


Lovely As Your Name

by dearhoneylemon



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Cinderella AU, Cinderella Elements, Genderbend, SHEITH - Freeform, with some hance on the side
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-28
Updated: 2017-05-30
Packaged: 2018-10-25 00:52:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10753302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dearhoneylemon/pseuds/dearhoneylemon
Summary: She is a girl, forced into a life of servitude by her wicked stepfamily. He is a prince, isolated in his tower of privilege and nobility. What they share together is the desire for freedom.A.K.A. The Cinderella AU we all desperately wanted. (Largely based on "Ever After")





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Sooooo I have written fics before....I ripped this one off from an oldie I wrote like two years ago (which I never finished because I felt that it didn't work).
> 
> Characters:  
> Fem!Keith as Katherine "Kit" of Marmora/Countess Lucina of Naboo  
> Shiro as Prince Takashi of Arus  
> Haggar as Baroness Honerva of Galra  
> Fem!Lotor as Laurraine  
> Fem!Lance as Lisia  
> Katie/Pidge as herself  
> Matthew/Matt as himself  
> Hunk as himself  
> *Shay as herself  
> *Thace as himself  
> *Slav as Slav Nikola  
> *Lord Zarkon of Daibazaal  
> King Harkinian of Arus  
> Queen Anju of Arus  
> Coran as the captain  
> *Princess Allura of Altea  
> *King Alfor of Altea  
> Queen Midna of Altea
> 
> *any known characters of a different species are human for the sake of the story

**Prologue:**

 

Once upon a time in a land far, far away, there lived a tiny kingdom, named Arus. It was a peaceful land in its own way, and for that, the kingdom remained blessed. In a simple little manor there lived an budding artist, his beautiful wife and their little daughter Katherine. Now little Katherine often viewed the world not always as it was but instead what could be with a little bit of magic. Though she had no title, no crown, and no castle, she was the queen in her own little kingdom. Together the three lived quite a charming life, and Katherine couldn't be anymore happier than to be with her family.

Unfortunately their happy life together would only be clouded with sorrow, as the lady of the house had passed away, leaving the husband a widow, and the daughter motherless. Despite the tragic loss, the two hadn't let despair get in the way of life, nor should they do so. Throughout her childhood, little Kathrine continued to smile and deliver light to the chateau. She treated the servants with dignity and respect, and had even befriended their children along the way.

Of course, the widow was a kind and devoted man who showered his beloved child with love and comfort, however, he felt she needed a mother's care. And so he married again, choosing for his second wife, Baroness Honerva, a woman of great nobility with two daughters around Katherine's age; Laurraine and Lisia. One fine day, while departing for a trip to a party outside of town alongside his new wife, the father promised his stepdaughters gifts of luxury; while the sisters requested for fine dresses and beautiful jewels, his own daughter simply asked for the first twig to knock his hat. The father brought the girls the wonderful presents soon after and for little Katherine, the first twig to knock off his hat. A few days later, Katherine was surprised with a special gift; a red rose. She would plant this twig and the rose by her mothers grave and the drops of sorrow would water the soil that covered it. Though Katherine had difficulties connecting with her distant stepfamily, she continued to try because what made her father happy, left her as such.

It was around the fatal passing of this kind gentleman that sorrow only grew into the household. On his deathbed, he devoted his last dying breath to his daughter, telling her to simply "have courage and be kind." His body was soon cremated into ashes, and scattered around his wife's grave by their only little child, their souls finally together after so many years apart. 'How indeed to live' the stepmother thought, for the first thing was to order up some beautiful mourning gowns of fine black bombazine for herself and her daughters as well as a lovely black ribbon for Katherine. However, shortly after the death of her new husband, the Baroness's true nature was revealed; Frigid, demanding and jealous of Katherine's benevolence and beauty, she deemed her own stepdaughter a threat and was greatly determined to draw the attention of her own beautiful, yet narrow minded daughters.

As time went by, the chateau fell into desperation, for Katherine's fortunes were squandered upon the Baroness' spoiled daughters and the stepfamily ever abused the poor child; Katherine was mistreated, humiliated and finally forced to become a servant in her own house. She was stripped of her possessions, for all were sold by the Baroness as a desperate attempt for more finances, leaving her with only a sole copy of Utopia, the last gift given to her by her father. As for her room, it had long been occupied by one of the stepsisters, forcing her to be isolated in the crumbling dusty attic. According to her stepmother's this distracted Katherine from the loss and so she and her daughters were gleeful to provide her with lots and lots of distraction. To their defense, they did share to Katherine the very meals they ate, much less the scraps from their table. At times, the attic became much too cold to sleep, so she instead took shelter by the dying embers of the fireplace to keep warm from the bitter cold.

But despite the pitiful circumstances, Katherine remained true to her father's promise, ever courageous and kind. She continued to befriend the other servants and workers, often assisting them in any help they needed, and in return, welcomed her as a second family she never had. From the Holt children, Shay the seamstress, Hunk the family chef and Thace the family carpenter to name a few, Katherine was blessed with a loving family of servants. As for the red rose and the little hazel twig, they had long been grown into a large and beautiful tree surrounded by a bushel of roses where her parents could rest in peace, and this tree in particular is where the girl would sit by the bushel and mourn for her deceased family. But even so, it would be a decade before somebody had entered her life, a man who was still a boy in many ways one would not fully comprehend...

**To Be Continued...**


	2. Chapter 1: In which the Servant Girl meets the Prince

**Chapter 1:**

  
At the crack of dawn, Katherine groaned tiredly as the rooster's caw echoed through the fields, waking up to find herself, once again, asleep reading by the fireplace with a book in hand. Her face and clothes were smothered with ash and soot. Exhausted as she was, she wanted to dream again but once the rooster crows, it is time to get to the market and fetch any food for the family breakfast before she begins the chores for the day; Today it is only bread, so Katherine was thankful she didn't have to get anything else. She stretched her arms as she attempted to brush off any remaining ash off of her ragged dress. She then stood up, grabbed her book and a basket and exited the fireplace.

The family chateau has now nearly fallen into shambles for the past decade or so, for the Baroness had paid no mind to it, but rather paid more attention to spending more money by the minute. Economies had to be taken and little by little, the possessions of Katherine's family had been disappearing mysteriously. As for the servants, the stepmother had sold them off as well. Just a few days ago, on of the Holt siblings, Matthew, had been sold off to the king to pay off The Baroness's, or rather Matthew's debts. Through many pleas and attempts to convince Honerva to release him, it was too late, for the Baroness hadn't even cared one bit for the poor boy. Now the staff were down from eighteen to five workers left, Katherine included.

Rubbing her eyes, she stifled a yawn and and exited the cellar, making her way to past the farm outside the chateau and through the meadows. Katherine crossed the bridge, through the babbling brook and onward to the busy village. The village of Arus bustled about; merchants settling their little shops for people to buy, villagers wandering about for necessities and children playing around the wishing well. Paying no mind to the commotion surrounding her, Katherine made her way to the bakery to pick up the bread.

"Good morning my dear, how was your morning," The baker's wife greeted happily to the servant girl as she finished putting cookies onto a neat little plate.

"Tiring," Katherine chuckled, scanning around the shop for any bread. "I wish I could sleep just a little more but you know, her majesty's orders."

"And how's that bitch Baroness and her wicked daughters?" The burly baker entered, bringing in a perfectly decorated cake.

"Sal!" His wife muttered. "Don't be so crass!"

"They're still the worst," Katherine laughed. "The Baroness practically ignores me these days, but Laurraine is quite another story." The girl rolled his eyes upon mentioning Laurraine, for she and the Baroness's eldest daughter did not get along well at all. "Nowadays. they're selling servants by the minute."

"Why do you still stay there if they continue to mistreat you so much?" The baker's wife added, giving a comforting hug to the child.

"Because I made my mother and father a promise, to cherish the place anyway I can. My parents loved that house, and now they're gone, I just...love it for them." Katherine took two fresh baguettes from the hot tray and placed them into her basket and dropped two silver coins onto the counter.

"Keep your money." Sal grinned as he handed back the coins to Katherine. "You'll need it someday if the Baroness does anything horrible someday."

"Someone's being generous today," The wife drawled as she made her way back to the counter.

"Why shouldn't I be, Romelle? Katherine's young, she doesn't deserve to be treated like horse shit!"

"Sal!"

Katherine chuckled and bid a thank you as she made her way out. Outside, a group of men were hauling out an enormous chunk of ice. The servant girl inspected the ice and remained in awe at the enormous size of the ice.

"Look at that ice! It's so giant!" The young girl questioned at the sight.

"So it doesn't melt." The baker answered. "Word has it these ice harvesters out in Balmera-"

Suddenly, the massive weight of the ice couldn't hold the straps any longer, thus breaking free from its suspended position, plummeting straight down to a man, and eventually killing him. A blood curdling scream had clouded the horrid display.

"MY GOD THAT WENT SOUTH SO FAST!" Sal covered his eyes in horror while Katherine tiptoed away from the gruesome sight, the baguettes thankfully secure from any residue.

"Where are you off to next?" Romelle asked.

"The bookshop so I can return this book to Professor Holgersson. It's about two lovers in fair Verona. I'll see you later!" Katherine left to the east side of town, opposite of the gruesome scene.

Ever since she was a child, Katherine had been spoiled with an array of books. Her collection over the years went from fairytales and stories about adventure, to books about science and philosophy, nevertheless, she couldn't stray from poetry and stories of war. Overtime, her once prominent library had been reduced to a lounge and the books she once treasured were sold off alongside the many other treasures that once stood proudly in the chateau. These days, the servant girl spends most of what free time she could gather simply reading books and even borrowing what books Matthew and Katie had in their small collection. At times, she would head to the bookshop to read whatever books the shop had that could satisfy her hunger of literature. Upon reaching the bookshop, Katherine opened the door and was welcomed by the elderly shopkeeper, Professor Holgersson.

"Ahh, if it isn't the only known bookworm in town." The Professor greeted the young lady. "So where did you run off to this time?"  
  
"Two cities in Northern Italy, I didn't want to go back!" Katherine handed the book to the shopkeeper, who was amazed by this young lady's passion for literature.  
  
"Finished already?" The old man smiled.

"Yeah, I just couldn't put it down, have you got anything new?" Katherine climbed up the ladder and inspected each shelf full of wonderful stories and poems.

"Not since yesterday my dear. But you may re-read any of the old ones that you'd like."

"That's alright, I'll borrow...this one!" Katherine handed a brown book to the professor, a book he can easily recognize as one that has been constantly borrowed.

"That one? But you read it twice!"

"But it's my favorite! How could I not like a story about the General of Scotland, it's probably one of Shakespeare's best stories to boot!"

"We'll if you like it that much, it's yours!" The professor handed the book back to Katherine, who in return raised her eyebrows at such a generous gift.

"But sir!"  
  
"I insist."

"Your library makers our small corner of the world feel big. Thank you so much!" The bookshop owner was blessed with a farewell from the servant girl with a hunger for knowledge.

*'*'*'*

Katherine walked back to the meadows that brightened the chateau with an field of flowers, her nose stuck in the tragedy of Macbeth as she casually took each step and the loaves of bread rested in her dangling basket. Her ears followed the trail of a soothing melody, similar to that of a lullaby. Tiny little pins of a steel comb made wonderful melodies that anyone can admire. This music came from the workshop where the family carpenter, Thace, would tinker and create anything that could easily make the Baroness enough money to waste on her daughters. Before long she could hear the old man hum and sing to himself with the music.

_"How does a moment last forever_

_How can a story never die?_

_It is love we must hold onto_

_Never easy, but we try_

_Sometimes our happiness is captured_

_Somehow, our time and place stand still_

_Love lives on inside our hearts and always will"_

"Nice little song you have there," Katherine smiled as she entered the workshop, putting down the basket of bread and the book onto a table away from the collection of trinkets and objects made by the carpenter.  
  
"Ah, Katherine always the first to rise," Thace smiled warmly at the young lady. "What brings you here?"

"I figured I'd still have time to visit before the Baroness and the girls are done with their breakfast. You seemed like you need a little company."

"Dear Katherine, as long as you and the others are safe, that is all the comfort I need. I'm terribly sorry I could not save Matthew in time."

"Thace, don't ever feel bad. It wasn't your fault. Nobody was able to save him on time."

"Someday soon, I'll save enough money so all of us can be free from the Baroness and by then, I'll have rescued Matthew from the New World and we can all be together like a family. I mean, I have always wanted to be a father." Both of them chuckled together as Katherine looked at the sketches and doodles drawn by him.

"Thace, you're already like a father to us and we're always grateful for-"

 _"Come on fleabag!"_ a voice cried from outside.

Katherine suddenly raised her head and ran to the window. From there she spied a shadow riding her father's brown horse, Charley. She stormed out the door and picked up a couple of rocks and dashed towards the direction of the thief. She bent her arm back and aimed for the perpetrator's back, doubling him to the ground.

"Thief! How dare you steal my father's horse?!" She bellowed at him while throwing another rock at his knee.

"Please, I can explain!" The stranger had his cloak covering his head and she couldn't see his face. He took another jab to his stomach.

"What's to explain? Get out!"

"I was only borrowing him-AUGH!" Katherine threw one more rock at his lower abdomen knocking him once more to the ground. He groaned in pain before heaving back to his feet.

"There's more where that came from-" She gasped and knelt before him when he lowered his hood, surprised to see the Prince, Takashi of Arus. Thace watched from a farther distance and merely cringed, for he had an inkling that Katherine would be punished for attacking Arus' beloved prince. Katherine continued to look below, avoiding contact with the prince. "Your highness! Forgive me, I didn't know it was you."

"I would have figured as much." He grunted as he was attempted to walk out the pain, rubbing the pain from his back. "You've got quite the arm."

"And for that I know I'm going to die."

"All I can say is...keep this between you and me." He stammered as he mounted the horse, still reeling from the pain.

"Please, we have other horses that you may use, they're much younger, faster." Her voice took a more gentle timid tone.

"I just want to be out of this prison. For your troubles." He dropped a bag of coins in front of her, leaving her speechless as he rode off with Phillipe. She wanted to thank him as many times over for he gave her more than enough money to set Matthew free.

"Katherine, what happened?" Thace hollered as he rushed over to the young girl's side. Katherine stood up, still amazed at the generosity of the Prince.

"Speak any of this to no one." She simply answered, maintaining the mesmerized expression.

*'*'*'*

Mornings at the chateau seemed quite dull, almost cursing the area with a gloomy aura similar to that of a funeral. Every morning Katherine is to bring the breakfast trays, only to be treated with cold shoulders from the Baroness, and snide remarks from Laurraine and Lisia, but even so, the servants remained kind and supportive enough to carry on with the day without hesitation. However that isn't to say the house is anything but jolly, as Hunk placed a bowl full of eggs onto the table side of the eldest daughter, Laurraine. In response, she merely pushed the plate aside, closing her eyes and exhaled heavily.

"I asked for four minute eggs, not four one minute eggs, and where in God's name is our breakfast?!" Laurraine raised her voice as she gave a horrifying glare to Hunk. The Baroness turned around from her tea and glared at the cook.

"It's just about finished My Lady." Hunk panicked as he grabbed the plate of eggs, scurrying back to the kitchen. The Baroness put down her teaspoon and stared blankly at her eldest daughter.

"Laurraine precious," The Baroness began. "What have I always told you about tone?"

"A lady of breeding must never raise her voice any louder than the gentle...whispering...wind." Lisia chided as she delicately tapped her egg with a spoon. Her sister merely rolled her eyes at the inferior girl.

"Lisia, for the love of God, do not speak unless you can improve the silence." The Baroness sighed irritably at her younger daughter as she sipped her tea. Honerva constantly favored Laurraine out of the two sisters due to her features being considered the most beautiful. While Laurraine was often praised with compliments, Lisia rarely ever got any blessings due to her thinner stature and lighter skin color and was panned with pressures to find a suitable man to wed, to say that she was a beautiful fool trying to win her mother's rexpect would be quite the understatement, for she had only acted harsh to the servants under the command of her mother.

"I was not shrill, I was being resonant. A courtier would only know the difference." Laurraine scoffed, directing her eyes at her mother, who put down her teacup.

"I very much doubt your style of resonance would ever be permitted in the court."

"I'm not going to the court, aren't I mother? No one is, excluding some Altean bitch they have the nerve to call a princess." Laurraine continued to twiddle and twirl her spoon, careful to not make any mess on the table.

"My dear, nothing is fair until your dead, but I'm sure The Lord negotiates." As the Baroness dipped the teabag onto her cup, she looked around the table for sugar. "I say, why the devil is there no sugar on this table? Katherine!"

"Coming!" Katherine hollered with confidence as she rushed to fetch the breakfast trays, clutching onto the coins from the prince and the basket containing the loaves of bread.

"There she goes again," Hunk mumbled as he finished the final touches on the breakfast pastries.

"Did the sun rise in the east?" Katie joked while setting the plates on the trays.

"Oh yes it did, Pidge!" Katherine took the bag of coins from her pocket and dumped it onto the table. "And it's going to be a beautiful day!"

"Holy crow!" Hunk flipped as she dumped a few coins from the bag. "Kit, where the hell did you get these?!"

"From an ever so generous angel, and I know just what to do with them."

"Does that mean Matt's coming home?" Pidge answered happily. Katherine quickly took an extra plate and utensils from the cupboard and placed them on a tray. She then went to the counter to fetch the sugar jar.

"Absolutely, if the Baroness can sell your brother to pay her taxes, I'm confident that these can bring him home!"

"But Kit! Matt's already been sold off by the king, he's bound for the new world-" Hunk poured the coins onto the bag and returned it to the elder girl.

"We're waiting!" The Baroness called from the other room.

"This is our family, and I'm not letting it crumble!" Katherine stuffed the bag inside her apron pocket as she gathered the breakfast trays. Arriving with a racing heart, she tried her best not to tip anything over.

"Good morning madam. Laurraine, Lisia. I trust you slept well."

"Morning Katherine," Lisia answered as she finished off her egg. Unlike Haggar and Laurraine, Lisia was the only member of the family that mistreated Katherine the least. She occasionally yelled at Katherine, and had demanded her around, however everyone but the Baroness and her sister knew this was all merely an act and she did not mean any of it.

"Katherine, what's that all over your face?" The Baroness questioned, referring to the ashes all over her stepdaughter.

"Someone's been reading by the fireplace again." Laurraine sneered, a cup of water on her hand. "Look at you ash and soot everywhere."

"Do clean yourself up." Honerva commanded in disgust, keeping her distance from the cinder covered servant, who quickly attempted to wipe the ash off her face and continued to set the breakfast dishes.

"You'll get cinders on our tea!"

"I got a new name for her! Cinder-wench!" Lisia piped in.

"Why don't you sleep with the pigs Cinder-Soot, if you insist on smelling like one." Laurraine began to cackle, making a rather wicked expression to her stepsister. "Or should I say, Cinderella?"

"Cinderella! That's what we'll call you!" Lisia clapped in joy, stifling a giggle.

"Oh girls, that was harsh." Honerva chuckled.

Ignoring her stepsisters insults, Katherine placed a plate onto an empty side of the table.

"Whose this for?" The stepmother pointed to the plate. "Is there someone we've forgotten?"

"It's for me," Katherine grinned.

"It seems too much for you to prepare breakfast, serve it and still sit with us." Laurraine added, the Baroness nodding in response. "Wouldn't you prefer to eat when all the work is done, Cinderella?" The elder sister then gave the servant a grin as wide as a Cheshire Cat. With an ever pleasant frown, the servant picked up the plate and the trays, heading out of the dining hall.

"Come here child." Haggar stopped her stepdaughter, grabbing her by the arm and bringing her to her eyes. "Your appearance seems distressed. Whatever can I do to make it better?"

Katherine took a deep breath as she quickly gathered what to say. "I do try madam, sometimes I sit and ponder on what I can do to-"

"On with it child, you know how I hate the mumbling." The Baroness had an irritated expression. A set of daughters was enough for any sort of annoyance in her household, now she had to put up with a mumbling ragged servant girl whom he had no desire to call a daughter. Katherine heaved deeply and continued to speak.

"I don't ask much, but if Matt were to come back, I would be forever grateful-"

"My answer's still no." The Baroness interrupted in an unpleasant tone. "That lazy boy was the source of my financial problems and unless his debt is paid off, he will never be coming back. After all that I've done for you, I have fed you, dressed you and gave you roof above your head and all I ask of you is that you help around the house without any complaint whatsoever! Is that much to ask for?"

Laurraine continued to smirk at Katherine's misfortune, for her sadistic nature made her enjoy seeing others in distress, while Lisia could only pout while hearing about one of the servants leaving. Katherine felt a nerve wrecking feeling as she tried incredibly hard to gather anything else to say without being interrupted by her stepmother.

"No madam, I-"

"Then it is final. From this moment on, I won't have anymore discussions of servants coming back. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal clear, madam." Feeling a sensation of defeat, Katherine returned to the kitchen, putting away the clean dishes back in the cupboard, stuck with no options, and no connections, nothing but a bag full of coins, or so she had thought.

  
**To Be Continued...**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Yes for anyone noticing, I did add some stuff from "Beauty and the Beast." By emphasizing Katherine's love of books, it also gives more meaning to "Utopia."**


	3. Chapter 2: In which we are introduced to the Artist

** Chapter 2: **

  
With the horse to ride solo, Prince Takashi dashed out of the wretched kingdom and into the woods, hoping he could embrace his very few days of freedom before his wedding. Without his knowledge, much less his consent, the King and Queen arranged a wedding with the neighboring kingdom of Altea, or rather forced their son to marry Princess Allura, whom he had considered no more than a friend despite their kingdoms constantly feuding, resulting in an arranged marriage to keep the kingdoms from said feuding. Takashi pleaded numerous times to stop the wedding, for he wanted nothing more to marry for love, but the rest fell to deaf ears as the king believed otherwise and thus, the decision was final. The prince continued on his journey, refusing to stop whatsoever.

"Oh no, there's nothing there!" A voice cried in despair. Takashi looked carefully to see a bearded old man being robbed by a band of gypsies. Trying to ignore the discourse, the prince carried on his merry way.

"I beg you, please leave us alone." The man continued to beg in a thick accent as he tried to chase the leader of the gypsies.

"Get on the horses!" A young burly gypsy hollered. "It's the Royal Guard! Run!" Takashi turned around to find the Royal Guard on pursuit. Just perfect.

"The painting..." The old man huffed running to the Prince. "Please, the painting...That man, he's getting away with my painting."

"The Royal Guard will assist you. I cannot." Takashi replied, praying he can get away from the Guards sooner than possible.

"Please sire! It is... it is my life!"

The Prince felt a rush of guilt, not wanting to set a bad example by deserting an old man's needs for his selfish desires. Takashi then nodded, putting his freedom on hold to go after the thief with the painting.

"Yah!" Takashi cried out as he commanded the horse to sally forth. Remembering this morning, he quickly scooped up a plethora of pebbles and tossed one by one at the gypsy with the painting. The gypsy however was not so fortunate to dodge the pebbles and dropped the stolen items, especially the painting, to the ground.

Takashi jumped out of the horse, creeping near the gypsy, only to be ambushed by another. He then nudged his way out of the clutches and spotted a frying pan on the pile of stolen possessions. He picked it up, just as the two gypsies drew out their swords. The duo began to swing their swords at the prince as he shielded the strikes with the frying pan. He pointed to the other side, drawing the gypsies attention away from her as he whacked their heads. The gypsies collapsed, knocked out cold from a blow to the head.

"Frying pans! Who knew?!" Takashi huffed as he admired the durability of the frying pan. He put the pan down to inspect the painting, making sure it remained intact, unaware of the incoming guards coming to fetch their prince yet again.  
"Quiznak," the prince muttered as he witnesses the horses approaching.

 

*'*'*'*

"This should be what you're looking for," the vendor croaked. Haggar took the gold brooch from him and held it up to Laurraine's neckline, right over the hems of her bodice, Laurraine then looked at her mother as if to indicate it wasn't the right one. The Baroness shook her head, for this would not capture enough attention to her daughter's chest. "Much too small," she sneered. "Needs to be bigger to catch the eyes of a nobleman."

The vendor chuckled sheepishly. "But, Baroness, I worry anything larger will cause her to topple over."

"Well then," Haggar's mind turned, pretending to turn around, ushering her daughter's to come along, as if they really were leaving. "We'll just have to take our business elsewhere."

"Wait a minute my lady. I may just have the thing for you after all." The vendor was in a panic, he searched about his shop to find only the best for the customer, falling for the little mouse trap. Haggar smirked. She then inspected the area, hoping that no other nobles were around, after all it would look absolutely tacky if a person of noble blood were to be seen shopping in a black market. Above the Baroness and the merchant were Hunk and Katherine, the latter about to attempt a drastic stunt.

*'*'*'*

"Are you out of your mind? Please tell me you aren't, but if you are..." Hunk panicked as he lectured his friend, sitting by the window. "Do you have any idea what the penalty for impersonating nobility? Five days in the stocks! Is it really worth all the risk?!"

Out of all the daring choices Katherine had done, impersonating a courtier had to be the riskiest, however she had to do it to rescue a young man's life, and her options at this point were very slim.

"You'd do the same for me, admit it!" Katherine answered.

"Me? Pretend to be a courtier?" Hunk snorted. "Prancing around like some high and mighty nobleman when I've never been to the court in my entire life, and neither have you!"

"Then I won't be noticed. Hand me that gown so I can be on my way." From behind the dressing screen, Katherine pointed to a beautiful crimson gown made of silk, hanging by an empty coat hanger. Hunk took the gown and tossed it over to Katherine's direction.

"Kit, they'll never buy it! You're too soft, even if you swear you're not!"

"They'll never buy a servant with 20 gacs either!" Katherine began to change out of her rags and into the gown. "I'm Matt's only hope at this point."

"And the Baroness, what'd you tell her?"

"I'm out picking wildflowers, Hunk can you still see her?"

"We'll they're buying something alright..."

"What is she buying this time?" Katherine asked in monotone.

"They're buying a brooch."

"Typical!" Katherine scoffed in anger. "She ignores the manor, blames us for her debt, and yet she continues to waste more than she can get!"

"Well, she's a bitch noblewoman with a title to bitch other people around, what power do we have over that?"

"I'm coming out...and don't you dare laugh!" Katherine heaved as she left the dressing screen. She emerged from the dressing screen, wearing the beautiful gown, however the gown itself was rather big and draped a little, gracefully touching the floor. Her ruffled hair and familiar features aside, Katherine looked quite beautiful for a faux noblewoman. However, she felt a wave of insecurity and hung her head a little. "Well the shoes are a little big."

In spite of being friends, Hunk couldn't help but feel admired at her beauty.

"Nobody will be looking at your feet," Hunk smiled warmly.

"Yards of fabric and I still feel naked."

"Look, if you're going to be a nobleman...you gotta play the part." Hunk came closer and locked his eyes at Katherine. "You look down to no one."

"I'm only a servant in a nice dress," Katherine reminded him. Despite people admiring her beauty, Katherine herself never thought of being an easy catch with men and often felt a sense of self loathing. Her stepsisters often mocked her for wearing dirty rags and her stepmother often discouraged her passion for knowledge, implying that a common woman must never learn to read, but rather look presentable to a man. But even in nice gowns and fine jewelry, Katherine felt she could never attract anyone with her rags and her infatuation of the classic literature.

"Come on, little puppy, we gotta do something with that hair." Hunk took Katherine's hand and the two scurried to a mirror.

*'*'*'*

Takashi walked back to the location of the carriage, followed by the horse bound Royal Guard, walking closely to an infuriated Captain Coran.

"Your highness, must we go through this again?" The captain of the guard asked with an irritated expression. "This has been the third time in three days."

"I know, I lied. I'm sorry Coran," Takashi sulked, the painting in his arms, walking back to the old man's location. "I...thought I'd have a moment of freedom before I get locked up again."

The old man looked up to see the prince coming back with the prized painting. "You did it," he cried. He quickly ran up to the prince and gave him a tight hug, a hug tight enough to nearly crush him, but not enough to crush the painting. "Thank you, your highness!"

"Besides, you said it was a matter of life and death!" Takashi told the old man as he handed him back the prized painting.

"In a million alternate realities, a woman always is my boy," The man opened the tin and rolled out the canvas to see a beautiful painting of a woman.

"She's beautiful," Takashi awed in delight.

"Sir Nikola has been invited to the palace as the artist in residence!" Coran piped in.

"Slav Nikola?" Takashi turned back to the old man, whose name sounded oddly familiar to him.

"Sir Kaltenecker was swamped with big mural for the isle of Baku." Slav nodded modestly. "I'm just a second choice."

"And here I am on my way to Beta Traz to find sanctuary, and I found my answer here! Sir Nikola! You're one of the few men ahead of their time and my father is one of the many that's behind! Surely you could talk my father into the 18th century!" Takashi pleaded, putting his arms at Sir Nikola looked at the captain in confusion.

"Captain Coran, care to translate?" The old man questioned.

"The Prince suffers...from an arranged marriage of all things."

The Prince gave the old man a charming grin and wide puppy dog eyes, charming enough for the old man to chuckle and nod.

  
*'*'*'*  
  
  
Within hours later, the Prince, accompanied by Sir Nikola and the royal guard made their first destination to the chateau where he swindled the horse this morning. Just as they arrived however, the Baroness Haggar crept out of the manor to greet her royal guest.

"Ah, Prince Takashi, what a pleasant surprise!" The baroness bowed down to where the prince made his stop. "To what we owe this great honor?"

"Yes, I...uh came to return your horse my lady," the prince replied, getting off the old horse as the Baroness crept closer to him.

"Is there something I should know about?" The Baroness curiously questioned.

"I took the liberty of borrowing it this morning," Takashi blushed sheepishly. "...and I believe one of your servants was scared out of her wits. A young lady with quite an arm."  
  
"She's is a mute servant of mine, my lord," Haggar lied, desperate to not be embarrassed by the prince.

"Actually from what I remembered, she spoke quite forcefully," The prince added.

"It...comes and goes. However as always Your Highness is welcome to anything he wishes." The Baroness proceeded to call for her daughter, the prince and the court could only stare amongst each other in confusion. "Oh ladies, come meet the prince." Her daughters, who were bickering amongst themselves, stopped what they were doing and made their way to their mother's location, slowly bowing in front him.

"Your highness may I present Laurraine Ophelia Tiana Odette Rosalina of the house of Galra...and Lisia of the house of Galra." Laurraine curtsied proudly while Lisia tried her best to follow suit.

"Good day ladies, forgive but it seems you have blossomed, overnight" Takashi bowed.

"We're greatly looking forward to celebrating your engagement to your Altean flower, my lord." Haggar grinned, creeping in closer to the prince.

"Yes well, there have been several new developments regarding Altea." The prince took his eyes off the baroness for a bit, drawing his attention to a gold little jewel on the eldest daughter. "Although I must say Laurraine, that broach looks amazing."

"Why this old thing?" Laurraine beamed, placing a hand on the golden brooch. "You're far too kind." Lisia frowned a little bit, disappointed of the prince ignoring her.

"I should be on my way," Takashi nodded as he hopped on the saddle of the Captain Coran's horse, clutching onto the captain himself by his waist. "Good day gentlemen." The band of horses rode off, making their way straight to the palace, to meet the glaring eyes of the infuriated King and worrisome Queen.  
  


**To Be Continued...**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *I really wanted to add Coran as Da Vinci, but Slav just screams eccentric and UGH! Those two are perfect in any way!*


	4. Chapter 3: To which the Prince meets the Countess

**Chapter 3:**

  
Katherine ran as fast as she could, tightening her grasp to the bag of coins as the skirt of the gown floated around her backside and all the while she kept her hair concealed in a bonnet. Upon entering the court, several armored men were there, barring any unwanted nobodies with their lances from the premises, only to raise them far from Katherine's way, allowing her to pass. Of course, she had never been to the court, however she'd never thought she'd actually set foot onto the higher parts of the kingdom in her entire life. Fixing her dress, she restlessly wandered around the bustling court, searching for her dear friend, until she suddenly heard a piercing cry of help coming from the very end of the harbor.

"I have money to pay my debts, _please_!" The voice cried.

"Get in there you filthy crook!" Another voice boomed.

She turned around to find a cage full of peasants and servants about to be shipped to the new world, one by one, each vessel of rags trudged to the ship of their fate. Then came Matt, forcefully dragged by guards from the cage to the ship, his struggles barely budging through the firm grasps of the cargo men, his scream would soon be silenced by a gag wrapped around his mouth.

"Please be okay," Katherine muttered as she ran down to the harbor in the nick of time just before Matt set foot on the ship. She then locked her violet eyes onto the bearded cargo master. "I wish to address the issue of this gentleman. He is my servant, and I'm here to pay the debt against him."

"MMPH!" Matt struggled from his chains and gag.

"You're too late, he's already bought and paid for," the cargo master haughtily laughed.

"Please sir, I can pay you twelve gac." Katherine handed over the bag of coins to the cargo master, only for the latter to push it away with his hand.

"Milady, you can have me for twelve gac, now move along!" The burly man interrupted, only serving to further arouse Katherine's anger.

"I demand you release him at once, or I shall take this matter to the King!"

"The King's the one who sold him, sweetheart. He's now the property of Jakku."

"He is not property at all, you ignorant piece of shit! Do you honestly think it's okay to chain people like animals? I command you release him at once-"

"Get outta my way!" The cargo master began to lose his patience, however at the most inopportune of times, as the prince arrived with a posse of guards.

"You dare raise your voice to a noblewoman, Sir Varkon?" Takashi commanded.

"Your Highness! F-forgive me, my lord. I meant no disrespect. It's just, uh... I'm following orders here." The cargo master shuddered. "It's my job to take these criminals and thieves to their new prison."

"A servant is not a thief, your Highness, and those who are can't help themselves," Katherine pleaded, her words were loud and clear for the audience of nobles to listen.

"Really! Well then by all means, enlighten us," Captain Coran nodded as he made a gesture to Katherine, allowing her permission to speak. The girl took a deep breath and began to recite her speech, her head held high.

"If you...suffer your people to be ill-educated and their manners corrupted from infancy and then punish them for those crimes to which their first education disposed them, what else is to be concluded, but that you first make thieves and then punish them?" Several courtiers stopped by to listen to the remarkable words spoken by the mystery lady, who finished her speech, adjusting her bonnet in the process.

"You're point?" The cargo master asked, unamused of the noblewoman's speech.

"Just because it's what's done doesn't mean it's what should be done!" Katherine retorted.

"Well, there you have it." The prince turned to the cargo master. "Release him."

"But my lady...!" The man protested.

"I said, release him!"

"...Yes sire." He then ushered his men to release Matt from his chains, reluctantly taking the bag of coins from Hiccup. Taking off the gag in his mouth, the servant boy ran straight to young lady and gave her a warm hug.

"I can't believe it," Matt uttered in joy. "Is it really you?"

"Meet me at the bridge," the lady soothed the young man, proceeding to proclaim her commands. "Prepare the horses, we shall take our leave at once."

As Matt scurried off to the bridge, Katherine made her way to the prince's location and gave her a proper curtsy before quickly leaving.

"I thank you, your Highness." The prince looked carefully at the mystery maiden and went after her.

"Have we met?" The Prince asked, following the lady's footsteps.

"I-I do not believe so, Your Highness." The latter shook her head, continuing on without a single glance at the former. The prince frowned and followed the young lady.

"Strange, I could have sworn I knew every single courtier in the kingdom."

"Well... I am visiting a relative." Katherine lied.

"Who?"

"My relative."

"Yes, you said that. Which one?"

"Th-the only one I have, my lord."

Takashi began to grow irritated and stopped him. "Are you doing this on purpose or do you refuse to tell me your name?"

"No...and never mind what they call me." Katherine attempted to carry on, but the prince continued to block her way.

"Well at least tell me who you are. For anyone who can quote Thomas Moore is well worth the effort."

"The Prince has read Utopia?" Katherine stopped for a bit and took a quick glance at the Prince. She expected it to be something he'd take interest in and assumed he'd use that as an inspiration to ruling his kingdom once he becomes king.

"I found it to be sentimental and boring. The thought of the everyday rustic bores me."

"I...take it you don't talk with peasants?" Katherine, frowned at the prince.

"Not really, no. Naturally."

"Forgive me, Your Highness, but there is nothing 'natural" about it.' Katherine chuckled sardonically, rolling her eyes. He would never assume the prince to be conceited, nor stupid, simply naive. "A country's character is defined by its 'everyday rustics,' as you call them. They are the legs you stand on and that position demands respect, not..."

"Are you suggesting I'm conceited?" Takashi glared a bit.

"Well, you gave one man back his life, but did you even bother to glance at the others?" The lady continued on, an impression that meant she had better things to do than to try and convince a gullible prince, only to be paused by the latter once again.

"Please, I beg of you, a name. Any name."

"I... I'm afraid the only name I could give you with... is Countess Lucina of Naboo." Katherine heaved. Anything but the title was simply her mother's name.

"Now that wasn't so hard, wasn't it?" The prince smiled warmly.

"Prince Takashi," a voiced called for the attention of the prince. "My lord, your parents wish to speak to you, and from the looks of it, I'd suggest you consider your words carefully."

"Riveting," Takashi replied somberly before turning to 'Lucina.' "I hope to see you again my lady."

"And I you," Katherine nodded as she made her way out of the court to catch up with Matt.

It had been a long walk back to the chateau, but the minute Katie saw a familiar face accompanied by Katherine, she dropped her basket of wildflowers and ran straight to her brother, tears falling down her cheeks as Hunk and Shay joined in the tearful reunion between the two siblings, while Katherine could only smile in content as she clutched onto the red dress.

"What happened?" Thace entered the scene with a worried expression on his face.

"We'll fill you in with the details as soon as I return the dress," Katherine smiled as she quickly made her way inside, leaving the old man to reunite with the eldest brother.  
  


*'*'*'*

  
"I signed off the marriage treaty with the king of Altea and that boy will obey me or there will be hell to pay!" The King boomed to his wife as he walked around their gargantuan sleeping quarters.

"But he doesn't love her dear!" The Queen informed her husband, following his footsteps. She had understood her son's situation, however she couldn't bear to show any treason to her husband.

"It's not about love!" The King tracked his pacing, synchronizing every step from one side to another.

"Well perhaps it should be!"

"Anju dear, If he is to become King, he must accept his responsibilities as such."

"A sapling cannot grow in the shadow of a mighty oak, Harkinian. He needs sunlight."

"He needs a good kick in the pants." The King glared just as his son appeared, looking rather undefeated, the captain and the artist who were following him stayed behind the door. "You sir you are under restricted grounds!"

"Am I under house arrest?" The prince snidely retorted at his father.

"Do not taunt me lad for I am in a foul disposition! And you will obey me or-"

"Or you'll what?" Takashi began to lose his patience. "Ship me to the New World like some crook, all for the sake of your stupid treaty?"

"Dearest, we discussed this," Anjus placed a hand on her son's shoulder, trying to console him in any way she could. "You were born to privilege, and with that comes...specific obligations."

"I'm sorry mother," Takashi pleaded. "But if I do marry, I want it to be for love."

"Love or not, you will marry Allura by the next moonrise or I will strike you any way I can!" The King interrupted.

"Fine, what'll it be Father, hot oil or the rack?"

"I will simply...deny you the crown...and live forever!" The king was merely losing the fight to his own son, no matter the consequences he would face.

"Fine! Agreed! I. Don't-"

"I don't mean to interrupt," Slav began. "But perhaps we could make a compromise."

"I'm listening," both father and son responded in unison.

"If love is what he seeks, consider this; four days to find true love, but three nights to get fully acquainted with his true love, the prince taking time with the woman he loves, dancing under the moonlight. We'll throw a big festival, for three days, just enough time for true love to blossom," Slav's succulent words gave the prince a dreamy sensation. "...and on the last stroke of midnight of the third and final night of the festival, he will proclaim his everlasting love to the fair maiden, otherwise the honors would go directly to the king and the original betrothal shall carry on."

"Very well then," the King huffed and glanced at his son. "Are we agreed?"

"What about your treaty?" Takashi looked up to his father.

"Let me worry about Altea my boy, you've got bigger problems."

"Choose wisely Takashi," the queen piped in. "Divorce is something they only do in Koridai."

"I wonder what's for dinner!" the king proclaimed as he left the room.

*'*'*'*

  
Katherine walked past the hallway, with a broom in hand, just as the two stepsisters were playing a board game.

"Somebody's in trouble," Laurraine mumbled in sing-song as she tossed a roll of die at the game board.

"Who is?" Katherine tilted his head in confusion, just as the Baroness quickly snatched Katherine by the ear and tossed her down to a chair.

"You stupid incompetent girl!" Haggar boomed at the servant girl. "How dare you do this to me? To Laurraine? Why the whole thing sickens me. Deceitfulness in my house?!"

"What did I do?" Katherine questioned in confusion.

"Think Cinderella, think really hard," Laurraine drawled as she tapped her fingers on the table. Meanwhile, Lisia quietly motioned her hands similar to a galloping horse ultimately reminding Katherine of the incident with the prince and the horse, but quickly took some die once her sister turned around.

"Princes Takashi surprised us a visit and said you were forceful! How dare you embarrass the family like this?" Haggar continued. "On with it! I must know exactly what was said this instant!"

"I...called the Prince a thief, madam, forgive me, I hardly recognized him!" Katherine answered, without a trace of stammers. This made the Barones's anger turn into laughter while Laurraine merely snickered.

"Oh Katherine! You simple little country girl." The Baroness walked to Laurraine's seat, smirking along the way. "Luckily for you, Laurraine and the Prince had quite an entanglement."

"Yes, I shouldn't be surprised if he drops by again." Laurraine answered smugly. The Baroness turned to the servant, her expressions were relaxed but remained stiff.

"So we must work extra hard to make sure the manor is spotless. We don't want a royal bottom sitting on a filthy chair, now would we?"

"No madam." Katherine shook her head as she sighed in relief. Soon enough, Matt and the other servants arrived in question of the commotion.

"What is he doing here?" Laurraine demanded, referring to Matt, the latter emerging from the hallway with his sister.

"I had paid off your... _my_ debt." Matt answered, facing the Baroness calmly. "They told me I could go home."

"Well then, don't expect any pay but food and shelter from now on. Is that understood?"

"Yes madam." He nodded and left to begin his chores, as did the rest of the staff. As for Katherine, she froze for a moment, pondering on the events from this morning. She lied to the Baroness, to the Prince and to the whole court. One little white fib escalated in the span of hours and the Baroness would be utterly displeased, as she hoped one of her daughters would win the heart of the prince. Not to mention, it wouldn't do well for the kingdom if the Prince was involved in some entanglement with a commoner. The servant girl grabbed a basket and headed straight to the fields to catch up with Shay, who was picking wildflowers.

  
*'*'*'*

  
"Who dear?"

"Countess Lucina of Naboo." Prince Takashi and the Queen took walk around the palace gardens, as the moon gave a faint glow to where the flowers rested. "She's a relative of...well...I don't know who her relative is... Suppose you know her mother?"

"Dearest" her mother began. "There are simply too many courtiers to remember them all by name. Why do you ask?"

The son looked at his mother and quickly shook his head. "Never mind, mother. But there's something I want to tell you and father."

**To Be Continued...**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will never stop cramming Star Wars and video game references. Nope. Nuh-uh.


	5. Chapter 4: Where we are fully acquainted with the Baroness

** Chapter 4:  
**

The next morning seemed pleasant this time around, for the Baroness hadn't raised her voice at anyone today, nor did Laurraine ever have a moment where she lost her temper over something trivial, in fact, since the encounter with the prince, she'd been pleasant in her own manner, but most importantly, no servants had been sold to the king. Needless to say, it was almost the perfect day in the chateau, nearly perfect for Katherine to gather berries from the garden, as the blackberries were ready to be picked today. As Katherine gathered the berries with Katie and Shay, a tall burly shadow emerged from behind, blocking the sun, only for Shay to turn around and shriek, catching the attention of the other two without any words.

"Katherine of Marmora. You get prettier every week," the figure greeted with a croak from behind. It was none other than Lord Zarkon, who had been close to the Baroness, however, the old man only had interest in Katherine as a little wife to torture and fool around with. He often said to Katherine that he'd treat her much better than the Baroness did, but Katherine knew right away he was merely bluffing.

"And you, my good sir, are wasting your flattery," Katherine replied unamused, continuing to ignore the old man.

"It's a pity your soil's the best in the province...and yet so poorly tended." Zarkon crept closer and stroked his fingers through Katherine's charcoal locks, only serving a shudder of disgust coming from the latter.

"We have limited resources, sir," Shay commented, motioning the older man to keep his mitts off the servant. "We do the best we can."

"Anything I can do?" The older man wished the other servants would leave him and his 'little wife' alone.

"You should bring it up with the Baroness and stick to shopping," Katie barked, glaring at the bigger man, who remained unamused and drew most of his attention to Katherine.

"No, I'd rather discuss it with Katherine, if you don't mind. I may be twice your age my girl, but I'm well-endowed, as evidenced by my estate." Zarkon's words both haunted and annoyed Katherine, causing her to walk away, only for the older man to follow her. "I've always had a soft spot for the less fortunate. You need a wealthy benefactor, and I need a young lady with spirit, like a little wife if you will."

"Prunes?" Katherine smirked, handing a basket full of prunes to Zarkon's face, the latter brushing them aside.

"No. I'll buy nothing this week. But remember without my generosity, your puny little farm would cease to exist. So I'd be cautious if I were you." He then turned his back to leave.

"UGH! Son of a bitch!" Katie growled. "If he didn't buy a bushel of veggies every week, I'd rip that smug ass mouth of his!"

*'*'*'*

"I come bearing great news Baroness." Zarkon began. He and the baroness were sitting by the lounge, discussing financial stabilities, for he manages the stability of the chateau and the well being of the family.

"Anything worth of interest this time?" The Baroness poured herself a cup of tea as she listened.

"As a matter of fact, the king of Arus is giving a festival, in honor of Sir Slav Nikola." The bigger man handed Haggar an envelope, enclosing an official invitation for the baroness and her family. Kozmotis took the invitation and began to scan every detail from top to bottom.

"The Slavic artist?"

"And this festival lasts for three nights, which is convenient because he is also looking for a suitable wife for his son, and every eligible maiden is to attend."

"What news of the engagement?"

"Canceled. Rumor has it that he must find himself a wife before the final day."

"Well, that won't give us enough time, I shall need to know who the competition is, every move he makes, his agenda, and every other tidbit you may find."

The Baroness reached for her wallet and placed a few coins, one by one, onto the table next to the tea set. Lord Zarkon took the coins from the table and put them in his pocket.

"He is playing tennis with the marquis of Endor tomorrow at noon."

"Splendid, when my daughter is queen, you may have whatever your heart desires."

"And what of the servant girl? After this horse incident, it's best to keep her from interfering with the prince again."

"Do what you wish. She means nothing to me." The baroness chuckled, with the lord joining him.

"I've grown rather fond of our intrigues together, Baroness."

*'*'*'*

"I can't believe I gave him my mother's name. I'm a liar to the court!"

Katherine and Katie were busy milking the cows in the farm. Katherine had already finished her buckets of milk, so she stood there waiting for Katie to finish milking the eldest and most stubborn cow.

"Well, I hate to be negative over here, my lady, but you kinda brought this on yourself," Katie smirked.

"Yeah, to save your brother."

"I mean you're not wrong."

Katie shrugged as she finished milking the eldest cow. She grabbed the bucket and was ready to leave the barn with Katherine.

"Yeah, well I'd imagine the prince doesn't take kindly to liars, even if they were to save a person's life. Leniency in the court just doesn't work that way, Pidge."

"Come on Kit," Katie giggled. "You and the Prince were kinda cute together! Admit it!"

Katherine rolled her eyes and continued on with the buckets. "Yeah, well ether way, I think he and Laurraine are perfect together so-"

"Shut your dirty pie hole!" Katie screeched as she whacked the taller girl's hair. "The only throne I want that broad sitting on is the one I have to clean every day!" Katherine laughed as the two made their way back to the kitchen with the buckets full of milk.

Meanwhile, the Baroness and Laurraine were in the bedroom, a plethora of fine gowns and dresses scattered around Laurraine.'s bed. With very little time to prepare for a festival, especially one that should last three nights, Haggar sought out to make sure Laurraine would win the heart of the prince, but most importantly, that she would be crowned queen.

"A pastel blue won't hurt, rumor has it he'll be wearing blue, it could be perfect!" Haggar drew a light blue gown with faint silver hems to Laurraine, who merely shook his head.

"Mother, I've got three nights to be able to dance with the prince!" Laurraine snapped as she rolled her eyes in annoyance. "I'm not going to let someone else take my rightful spot!"

"Well, how about this one." The stepmother picked out an elegant royal purple gown.

"It's purple!"

"Takashi loves purple!"

"And fifty other girls will be wearing the exact same color!"

"Very good Laurraine." The Baroness nodded.

"Well this dress is way too small." Lisia gasped as she attempted to move about on a corset.

"Perhaps we should get you a tighter cinch." Haggar paid no mind as she mainly focused on Laurraine, much to the chagrin of her younger daughter.

"But I can barely breathe as it is!"  
  
"Lisia dear, remember what I mentioned, if one cannot breathe, one cannot eat." Those words alone made Lisia turn away in frustration.

"Mother! Focus!" Laurraine tossed aside a gown in a fit of frustration and paced around. "Do you at least have something fit for a queen?!"

An explanation such as that gave the stepmother quite a sinister idea, an idea that someone like Katherine may not agree.

"Darlings. Come. I have just the thing. But speak of this to no one."  
And with that, the baroness scurried through the hallways to the master bedroom, the two daughters following suit. Within seconds the two sisters found their mother rummaging through an old trunk to find a dress owned by Katherine's mother. A beautiful white gown with peach colored rose petals blossoming beautifully with the white silk. The sleeves were quite old fashioned, but the dress remained as elegant as can be.

"Beautiful," Laurraine answered in awe.

"Wow," Lisia's jaw dropped as she took out the golden shoes. "Look at these shoes. Where did you find these?"

"They're Katherine's dowry for her wedding," The Baroness responded, airing out the suit, brushing off the dust. She then pinned the dress to Laurraine to see if it would fit.

"Cinderella getting married?" Laurraine chuckled. "To whom, the chimney sweep?"

"If it's Katherine's," Lisia began as she inspected the shoes. "That means she can go to the festival too! Right?"

"Since when does a royal function invite commoners?" Laurraine sneered at the thought of Kathrine of all people going to the festival.

"I don't see why not." Lisia rolled his eyes, for she wanted her stepsister to have some fun at the ball. "The invitation did say by royal command, every eligible maiden is to attend-"

"But she's not of noble blood you dolt," Laurraine interrupted, her eyes focusing on the dress. "And besides no one would notice, wouldn't they?"

Lisia did not reply, for she could only watch her mother and sister admire and measure the dress.

"What are you guys doing?" Katherine entered the room, clutching onto some firewood for the fireplace, a confused expression on her face. The trio stood frozen in thought to stray the servant girl with a clever lie.

"Airing out your dress," Haggar began to fib with a genuine smile. "I figured that we could all go to the king's festival as a family, provided if your chores are finished until then."

"Me? You want me to go to a festival?" Katherine's face lit up upon hearing her stepmother's words. "I-I don't know have the words." The two stepsisters glared in confusion.

"Honestly Katherine, I'd hate it when you don't feel apart of our family! Also, if you can find something else suitable to wear, you may go to the other two as well."

"I'm sure I'll think of something, thank you so much!" Katherine shook the Baroness' hand and left the room with a smile.

"Mother, have you lost your marbles?!" Laurraine squeaked in horror. "You'll let that homely jackass spoil my chances-"

"I said if," Haggar reminded her elder daughter.

"Oh, if," Laurraine snickered to herself. Lisia on the other hand remained confused as to what her mother meant by 'if.'

*'*'*'*

"Do you really think there is only one perfect mate?" Takashi asked as he and Slav made their way to the majestic lake at the far side of the woods to test out his latest invention.

"As a matter of fact, I do." Slav nodded.

"How can you be sure to find them? And if you find them, are they really the one for you...or do you only think they are? What if the person you're meant to be with never appears? Or she does, but... but you're too distracted to notice-" Slav placed a finger on the lips of the prince, silencing him from his stress and began to respond.

"You learn to listen. You cannot leave everything to fate. She's got much to do. Sometimes you must give her a hand."

"What's this?" the prince pointed to an unusual contraption in his hands.

"Would you care to see if they work? It's supposed to help you survive in several alternate realities to which you could potentially drown!"

The old man then made his way to the water, putting on the strange devices on his feet, walking over the water as if he were the Son of God. Meanwhile, from another end of the forest, Katherine had been gathering truffles in the forest with the family pig. The servant girl had spotted a truffle from the ground and went to pick it up, inspecting it from any hazardous residue, only to realize her hands had grown firm and were tattered in dirt. After years of hard labor, it had become apparent that it had taken a decade for the Baroness and her daughters to indeed transform her into a creature of cinders. The servant then took off to the lake to take a dip in the soothing water in the lake and began to float, gazing at the purple sky above her, unaware of the oncoming Slavic on stilts.

"It looks like rain!" A loud voice chided at the young lady, who in return screamed and caused the old man to fall down to the water with her. Takashi saw this as a funny sight to see and began to laugh.

"Are you all right?" He chuckled, running straight to the shallow waters.

"I should leave walking on water to the angels," Slav scoffed, shaking from the water contact. "Fortunately, I tripped over one." In the eyes of the princes, that 'angel' appeared to be none other than Countess Lucina, sopping wet from the surprise of the eccentric artist.

"Countess Lucina?!" the prince ran to the drenched maiden, a blanket in hand to keep her warm.

"Your highness!" the latter responded in shock, moments before slipping into the water again. "Careful, it's slippery down there!"

"Oh, umm...allow me!" The former then draped the cloth over the 'countess,' making sure she didn't catch any sniffles. The two then made their way to what appeared to be a picnic table and sat down while the old artist went to another side to dry off. "Where are your attendants?"

"I...decided to give them the day off," the latter shrugged. Another encounter with the prince was surprising, but in her rags no doubt, thankfully the prince didn't pay any mind and the drying cloths she was given seemed to covered the majority of her clothes.

"Day off? From what? Life?"

"Don't you get tired of people waiting on you all the time?"

"Yes, well...they're servants. It's what they do."

"I wish I could dismiss mine as easily as you do yours, I must be going." the countess continued on, not a single glance returned to the prince.

"You're angry with me."

"No."

"Just admit it."

"Well, yes, if you must know." Kathrine stopped and glanced at the prince for a moment.

"Why?"

"Because you are trying to bait me with your snobbery."

"I'm afraid my lady, you are a walking contradiction..." Takashi corrected. "And I find that interesting."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. You talk of the ideals of a Utopian society, yet you live the life of a courtier."

"You own all the land there is, yet you take no pride in working it. Is that not also a contradiction?"

"First I'm arrogant, and now I have no pride. How do I manage that?"

"You have everything and still the world holds no joy. But you poke fun of those who would see it for its possibilities."

"How do you do it?" the prince tilted his head in confusion at the countess' words.

"What?"

"Live each day with this kind of passion? Don't you find it exhausting?"

"Only when I'm around you." Kathrine calmly replied. "Why do you like to irritate me?"

"Why do you rise to the occasion?" Takashi chuckled, making the dripping lady chuckle as well.

"Kathrine!" a familiar voice cried from the farther side of the lake. It was Katie, carrying the basket of truffles and the pig by her side. Kathrine panicked, returning the now dripping wash cloth to the prince.

"Er... Forgive me, Your Highness, I've lost track of the hour." She began to make her way up the hill and onto Katie's location.

"But the wind, it's perfect!" Slav cried as he held a flying contraption waiting to touch the skies.

"I apologize," the young lady replied.

"I'm playing tennis tomorrow with the marquis of Endor. Can you come?" Asked the prince.

"I must be going now."

"Meet me at the festival then!"

"I'll do my best!" Within a few seconds, Countess Lucina vanished into thin air, as if she really were an angel with the ability to disappear anytime she pleased.

"Why does she keep doing that?" Prince Takashi mumbled to the artist.

  
*'*'*'*

Dinner time became rather dark and silent, releasing yet another gloomy atmosphere, well only tonight it would seem, as the candlesticks of wax were at their dying flame and could only light the room enough, the dusk slowly overtook the dying light, while all the servants stood beneath the walls watching the stepfamily eat their dinner.

"Shay. Where are the candlesticks?" Haggar stopped eating and asked. "We can hardly see our plates."

"They're missing, my lady," Shay trembled. "I've searched high and low."

"The painting in the upstairs hall has disappeared too, it seems we have a thief in our midst." Laurraine chuckled as he ate her salmon. If it seems the servants couldn't be sold without them 'weaseling' their way back, then would it be possible to sell valuable items that once stood proudly in the chateau? For now, only time will tell.

"Well, so this is how I'm treated after all our years together. My husbands prized possessions, stolen! I shall just garnish your wages until the pilfered items are returned. Is that quite understood?"

"Yes madam," all the servants nodded. Katherine kept quiet. Yet another treasure from her family had been missing. Shortly after Matt returned, the silver had gone missing, leaving the Baroness to create accusations at the staff for theft, an accusation that had already been proven false.

"Perhaps I shall ship you to the New World with the rest of the thieves." The Baroness mumbled silently with Laurraine smirking to her hearts content, but the words of the stepmother were not silent enough for anyone else to hear.

"Oh. Didn't you hear?" Lisia piped in, her mouth partially full of vegetables. "The Prince asked the King to release all those people just last night."

"He didn't!" Katherine gasped, earning a startled gaze from her stepmother before calming down.

"Yep, Now by..." Lisia swallowed her food before continuing. "By royal decree, any person who sails must be compensated."

"Compensated?" The Baroness scoffed. "Honestly! What is the world coming to?"

"What I want to know who is this mystery countess everyone keeps talking about." Laurraine added as she waved her cup at Katherine to fetch more water. Katherine turned away from the family, leering at the other servants, who did the same to the lady as she grabbed the pitcher and poured water on the cup. "Ten courtiers spoke of nothing but her today and how the Prince fell all over himself."

"Well we should figure out who she is and **bury** her."

*'*'*'*

The morning of the tennis match grew exhausting, as Takashi anticipated the arrival of his tennis date. The eligible women of the court gathered round to support their prince, or rather win his hand and woo him to marriage. It wasn't long before the marquis of Endor entered the tennis court, bowing at the prince, who returned the gesture. Takashi took a ball from a basket and slammed it with his racket at the marquis, who shot back the ball and sent it high in the air. Takashi quickly ran after the ball, however he fell straight to a crowd full of swooning women, fussing over him and giving him all the unrequited attention. Before long, the prince stood up and looked around, having been covered in dozens of handkerchiefs and flowers from every woman wanting his hand. He quickly brushed off every single petal and cloth, receiving chuckles from the women and the marquis himself. He looked around for the ball only to have the marquis motion him to look behind, for the eldest daughter of the family of Galra, Laurraine. The beautiful maiden appeared outside of the fence with a tennis ball in her hand and an ever pleasant grin on her face.

"You're looking well, Laurraine," the prince blushed, gently taking the tennis ball from her hand.

"You're welcome to look, Your Highness," Laurraine flirted. Takashi took the ball, nodding a thank you to the lady and returning to the tennis game.

After a rather hilarious (albeit embarrassing) loss to the marquis, and a dozen more flowers and handkerchiefs from the women, Takashi offered to spend time with Laurraine and the family, who willingly accepted his offer, hoping to get acquainted with them and find if they knew anything about Count Stefan. The two walked together all around the village, with Jackson and Kozmotis trailing from behind, and the royal guard following them as well.

"Here," Takashi took the box and handed a piece of richly tasting candy to Laurraine. "Never have you tasted anything so...delicious." Laurraine slowly opened the mouth, motioning the prince to put a piece of chocolate in her mouth.  
  
Takashi took a piece of candy and popped in into her mouth. Laurraine's reactions of the candy were soothing, for the candy itself must be delicious.

"Do you like it?" the prince smiled.

"Like it?" Laurraine responded, careful of not spew any bits onto anyone. "Why, it's absolutely sinful. What do they call it?"

"Chocolate. The monks of Altea keep sending us bricks of it."

"Allow me, my lord?" Laurraine took another and handed it to Takashi, as if to feed the piece of heaven to him.

"Oh...sure. Okay?" He mumbled as he slowly opened his mouth for the saccharine sensation of cocoa entering inside. Lisia loved sweets and wanted to taste a sample, sneaking in a piece before being stopped.

"Don't even think about it," the Baroness grabbed her younger daughters hand, preventing her from trying the heavenly treat, more importantly interfering with the interactions between the prince and the elder stepsister. It would be moments before they would resume wandering about, passing by the servants, who were doing their best to impress the prince as commanded by the Baroness.

"These are our servants, Your Highness." Laurraine gestured to the people working in front of the chateau.

"Really?" The prince questioned happily. "I'd love to meet them." The two walked up to Hunk and Shay, who froze for a moment while preparing the goods to sell.

"Good day," Laurraine nodded at the servants.

Katherine entered the scene with a chicken and panicked at the immediate sight of the prince, dropping the chicken at the prince and everyone else, receding from view, all but the prince noticing the inexplicable figure.

"What in heaven's name are you doing, trying to scare the Prince to death?!" The Baroness roared at the servants.

"We were startled, that's all," Shay answered sheepishly.

"Were there just the two of you?" Takashi looked around for the familiar figure.

"And the chicken, Your Highness," Hunk added.

*'*'*'*

"We must press for a quick engagement! Ylisse at Christmastime. Can you imagine?" Haggar sat by the fireplace, proud of her daughter finally catching the proper attention of the prince.

Katherine merely smiled as she placed another log onto the flames.

"I don't suppose you can." The stepmother sneered, ushering Katherine to fix her hair, the latter took out a comb, and hurried to the back of the stepmother and began to comb her hair. "My mother was hard on me too, you know. She once taught me that cleanliness was next to godliness. She forced me to wash my face at least twenty times a day, convinced it was never clean enough. I was very grateful to her, for she wanted me to be all that I could be. And here I am...a baroness...and Laurraine shall be queen." Katherine kept silent as she continued to gently comb through tangled knots. Haggar carefully placed a hand on the face of her stepdaughter, careful of not to touch any filth, and dragged her closer to her eyes.

"Such a pity you never remembered your mother." The Baroness drawled. "There must be a little bit of him in you somewhere."

"I wish I could remember what she looked like," Katherine answered, her mother had passed when Katherine was no more than a toddler, as a result his memories with her were bare. "Not even papa could ever tell me."

"Yes. Well, we must never feel sorry for ourselves, must we? No matter how bad things get, they can always get worse."

"Yes, madam."

"You have so much of your father in you." The stepmother gazed deeply at her stepdaughter, for she did know for certain that Katherine indeed took after her parents. She knew right away the moment they met, her father's charm and wit had been passed down to his only daughter. "Sometimes I can almost see him looking out through your eyes."

"Really?" Katherine's face lit up.

"Yes, well...Your features are rather...masculine, and to be raised by a man...it's a wonder to me how you're built for hard labour." Haggar then began to pat Katherine on the left side, indicating the strength she had earned from years of servitude.

"Did you love my father?" the servant swallowed, asking her stepmother, as if she really did care about her husband, even in the slightest bit.

"Well...I barely knew him. Now off you go. I must retire now," the Baroness brushed the girl away, ushering her to leave. Katherine got up and walked away, closing the door on her way out.  


**To Be Continued...**


	6. Chapter 5: The Beginning of the Festival

Chapter 5:  
  


The day of the festival arrived and everyone in the kingdom of Arus healed their breaths in anticipation. Seamstresses drowning in gowns to create, chefs and bakers preparing in advance for the delicious treats to eat, and the royal family leaving every spot in the kingdom intact for the party guests. Meanwhile in the house of the Galra family, Laurraine, Lisia and the Baroness made sure everything was to be perfect for tonight, however this also caused the tempers of the sisters to become a thousand times more monstrous than usual, to the point where practically everyone else had to cover their ears the majority of the time they were near the two sisters, whether they were bickering amongst each other or commanding servants around. Not for the first time Katherine actually felt remorse for the two scheming sisters who could be every bit as ugly within as they were fair without.

"Too tight!" Lisia gasped for air while Katherine tugged on the strings that confined the stepsister in a tight corset. The servant loosened the corset and tied the strings together, allowing her poor stepsister to breathe.

"Remember sister dearest," Laurraine brushed her limpid locks by her bureau. "Just sit there and look pretty by the tables and maybe someone of interest might notice you. Me on the other hand, why the prince is as good as mine."

"Wouldn't you like to get to know a bit about him before you marry him?" Lisia questioned her elder sister, adjusting her corset in the process.

"Are you daft? All men are fools."

"But shouldn't a man love you for who you are, in spite of everything?" Katherine intervened, Lisia smirked at her sister, who stopped her brushing to listen to what her stepsister had to say.

"How riveting. Do tell Cinders. What would you say to capture the prince?"

"I...don't know." Katherine pondered for a moment, her true intentions were to speak the truth to him.

"I do." Lisia sprang from her seat and twirled in happiness as Kathrine followed to her with a blue hoop skirt while the eldest sister merely scoffed and turned away. "Whatever I'd say, we'd know in an instant we were meant for each other. Then he'd smile and kiss my hand."

Nonetheless, the Baroness' daughters were quite prepared to catch the attention of the prince; the same could not be said for their stepsister.

Through the unusual number of chores given to her by her stepfamily, Katherine also took what extra time she had to search nearly everywhere for the suit the Baroness promised she'd wear to the festival, having it been mysteriously disappeared. If it weren't for Shay's persistence to find an alternative instead, Katherine would've either given up the search and not go to the ball with her stepmother and stepsisters or she would've wasted her time finding next to nothing. Once chores were finished for the day, the two rushed to the old attic to begin planning on what the girl could wear for the festival. Shay, being the house seamstress, willingly offered to help Katherine upon hearing her personal 'invite.' The seamstress pulled out a heavy chest and dragged it by a wooden table. She also took out some old fabric and ribbons and paced one by one on the table. Shay then placed her basket of sewing tools, along with a book of clothing ideas and laid them to rest on the fabric, just the perfect time to prepare. If the Baroness would not have a fourth dress made, it occurred to the servant girl that there was no reason she would not try and mend one, after all with the help of the seamstress the chance of her going would be possible. Katherine opened the dusty chest, finding it stuffed with old clothing from her family. She rummaged through the trunk and took out a gray evening gown.

"What do you think of this one?" Katherine asked, holding the dress.

Shay frowned a bit and inspected the coat. "The sleeves are way too fluffy, and the hems make you look silly. Ooh! I love this one!"

Katherine inspected a simple magenta dress held by Shay, the skirt draped in layers and different shades of magenta, a dark colored sash draped in between the skirt The bodice was silky enough, but the sleeves were a bit much, leaving the dress to be dated. After looking through, she then shook her head.

"I don't really like the sleeves. Suppose this book has any ideas?" Katherine asked as she opened the book, skimming through the pages.

"Your mother's favorite dress! I thought the Baroness sold this one! My grandmother told me that your mom looked so beautiful wearing this!" Shay sighed as she lovingly caressed an silky gold dress, stifling her coughs from the dust looming around it. She then raised her head in excitement, for anyone could tell she had an idea. "Hey! What if we could use it to make you a new suit, it'd be like taking him along with you!"

"Shay, I could never tamper with my mother's dress." Katherine began, dragging a finger on the gems of the dress.

"Kit, your mom probably wouldn't care as long as you are happy." Shay reassured the other girl as she turned the pages to find a perfect fit she stopped at a page with a beautiful gown and a neckerchief. "What do you make of this one?"

"Shay that looks perfect!" Katherine smiled in content.

"Cinderella! Get down here!"

"Really?" Katherine winced a little from the piercing demands. It was Laurraine, once again demanding her assistance for the umpteenth time today.

"We're waiting!" The Baroness bellowed.

"What do they want now?" Katherine huffed a little, looking back at the coat and turned to the door. "Guess it'll have to wait. I'll see you later Shay."

Katherine went down the stairs and made a beeline to the cellar to find Haggar and Laurraine standing by the fireplace, a plate of lentils on the hands of the elder stepsister.

"My dear stepdaughter, if you wish to go to the festival with us," Haggar motioned her daughter to drop the plate onto the fireplace. "Pick up these lentils from the fireplace, finish your chores, and you shall go. Good luck."

"And once you're finished with those lentils," Laurraine chuckled maliciously. "I have some other things for you to do as well."

The two women left the fireplace, confident that the lentils will slim their homely stepdaughter's chances of going to the festival. Katherine went as fast as she can to swiftly pick and peck each lentil from the fireplace into the pot. By an hour or so, all one hundred lentils were in the pot and Katherine felt close to sleeping; however, she quickly cleaned up and headed upstairs to complete the rest of the extra chores she was given.

Before long, Katherine completed each task, however right at the same time the Baroness and her daughters were finished getting ready, along with the rest of the kingdom, therefore it seems it had been too late for the servant girl to get ready for the festival. She wiped some the ash off her face with the dusty apron as she made her way to Haggar's sleeping quarters, her rags tattered with residue from lentil picking. She knocked on the door and stood there until the Baroness pop out to answer.

"The carriage is here," Katherine spoke melancholically.

"Why Katherine, you're not ready child," The Baron's tone became more sympathetic to give the impression of concern.

"I'm not going." The stepdaughter hadn't turned her head around, for she didn't want to risk showing her morose expression to his stepfamily, yet the Baroness could see right away she was upset. Behind the Baroness were Laurraine and Lisia, listening in on the exchange of dialogue from their mother and stepsister.

"Not going? What a shame, but of course there'll be other times, and-"

"Yes, good night."

Katherine walked away from her stepmother in defeat, denied the chance to tell the prince everything and be relieved from her guilt. Her mother's prized dress gone missing, her alternates remained unfinished, and she barely had little time to wash the ash off her face. A wave of pessimism loomed around the servant as she made her way back to the old drafty attic. While there, she pondered to the broken window, where a lovely sight of the fireworks took place in front of the castle.

"Oh well, guess it wasn't meant to be, I mean, it's probably going to be boring and it's not like I deserve a night off after that lie, right?" Katherine moped, twiddling her finders on the wooden windowsill.

"What makes you say that?" A familiar voice replied from behind him. Katherine turned around to find Katie next to her, a grinning so widely.

"Pidge? What are you doing here?"

Ignoring her protests, the shorter girl blindfolded and dragged her all the way to the servant's quarters where the other servants were standing. Katie quickly took off the blindfold, only for Katherine to find herself standing in front of a newly finished ballgown, designed to be worn for the festival. Katherine's mouth dropped as her violet eyes widened at the ray of hope.

"Unbelievable," She mumbled. "How did this-"

"I had a little help," Shay smiled. "We used some of the nicest fabrics we could find to make something extra special."

Unsure of what to say, Katherine grabbed the servants and gave them all a warm hug.

"Thank you so much you guys, this...this is...I'm at a loss of words!"

"Now go and wipe the dirt off your face, Kit!" Katie shoved Katherine out of the door, the suit in her arms. "The ball awaits!"

As preparations were becoming practically perfect, Haggar walked from the hallway and straight to the door donning a beautiful royal purple gown and her hair kept in a fancy updo.  
Laurraine and Lisia were dressed in beautiful pastel gowns with feathers and lace. Laurraine's dress was a blend of a lavender and pink, while Lisia's was a mix of periwinkle and blue.

"My my, have I not seen such a fine specimen in my life," the Baroness smiled, as the sister stood proudly of their mother's words. "My dear girls! It gives me such confidence to believe that one of you could sweep the prince off his feet. And to think I have two fine horses in the race, I dare say no one in the kingdom will outshine my-"

"Wait!" A voice chimed as the stepfamily turned their heads to find Katherine quickly scurrying down the stairs, the beautiful gold dress glimmering through the stairs. "It cost you nothing! It was my mother's dress but the servants and I tweaked it up into something nice. Do you think it'll do?"

"Oh my! Cinderella at the ball?" Lisia smugly retorted. "No one wants a servant for a bride!"

"After all I've done-" the Baroness began, the anger brewing.

"Look I don't want to ruin anything," Katherine answered calmly. "I don't even want to meet the prince!"

"Oh you won't. This is no question if you going."

"But you said if I finished my chores, I could go, and by royal command of the King-"

"It is the King I'm thinking about, after all, it would be an insult for a royal personage to take you to the palace dressed in these old rags."

"Rags? But this was my mother's." Katherine couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"I'd hate to inform you my dear, but your mother's taste was questionable." The Baroness added as she crept closer and closer to the girl. "This thing is so old fashioned, it's practically falling to pieces!"

Haggar grabbed Hiccup's left arm and yanked the left arm sleeve, a ripping noise could be heard, and the arm sleeve had been torn from the coat.

"The shoulder's frayed!" The baroness taunted as she continued to rip Hiccup's suit piece by piece. "It's falling to bits!"

"And this is a ridiculous, old-fashioned joke, are you trying to make me a fool of the ball?!" Laurraine screeched at the girl as she slashed a piece of the skirt. Piece by piece the sisters continued to tear apart the dress.

"The king is looking for his son a wife, not a scullery maid!" The younger sister tore the ribbon off her back as the baroness continued to smirk at her stepdaughter. Before long, the once beautiful dress had long been ripped to nothingness. The stepsisters stopped to see their damage and began to laugh. Katherine glared in disbelief and turned her attention to her stepmother.

"How could you?" Katherine growled.

"How could I otherwise? I will not have anyone associate my daughters with the likes of you. You'd ruin their prospects to be seen at the palace with some ragged servant girl, because that is what you are and that is what you will always be. Now mark my words, you shall not go to the ball!"

Turning away from the girl, the Baroness and her daughters departed for their carriage, Lisia being the only one to look back at her stepsister, leaving Katherine to simply look down at the carriage making its trail to the festival. Fuming with anger at the betrayal of her stepfamily, the servant girl stormed out of the chateau, resting onto an old well of marble in disbelief. She only wanted to go to the festival to set the record straight to the prince, she had no intentions of wooing the prince at all, for she believed he would find out sooner after being dishonest to him, but even so, simply one night to breathe and to enjoy life while it would last was simply all too much to ask?

From above the trees came a white dove, who flew by the young girl and nuzzled her chest. From there, the bird cooed, motioning her to follow it. With hesitation, she followed the bird into the woods. Deep within the forest, she continued to chase the bird until she reached her parent's grave, the large tree remaining as magnificent as any other and the roses still blooming. The bird was finally found resting by a thick branch. Katherine crept closer to the tree and knelt down to breathe after running so much. The stone of marble with her mother's name engraved stood proudly by the tree, and the empty urn that carried her father's ashes lay next to it. There she stood, eyes meeting the giant tree.

"I wish..." Katherine huffed, expecting just a simple warm touch to carry on the night, but at the last minute he stopped and hung his head low. "This is ridiculous, I lied to the Prince to save a servants life, the dress is torn and I couldn't save all of your treasures, nor the manor. I don't have any courage at this point, and I don't think wishing will ever work in the long run."

She sighed in melancholy and sat by the bark of the tree, closing her eyes, for she was under the influence that there would be no such embrace now, as she felt much too old and much too heartbroken to even believe that such a lone tree would make her innocent fairytale-like wishes come true.

"Guess it just wasn't meant to be."

"What is it that you wish?" A familiar motherly voice echoed through the forest, through only Katherine could hear. She turned around to the direction of the tree in awe, looking around to see if there was anybody nearby.

"Go on child," another voice followed. The tree released a calm, soothing atmosphere that circled the girl. Katherine closed her eyes, feeling the same embrace she missed years ago, only this time, something felt quite different this time around, for the aura lifted her up from the ground. The voices began to sing a song as appeasing as two harps creating a melody together.

_"Do you know what you wish?_

_Are you certain what you wish_

_Is what you want?_

_If you know what you want,_

_Then make a wish._

_Ask the tree,_

_And you shall have your wish."_

The servant girl felt the aura continue to cloud her until she could see nothing but a bright shade of gold, glistening as silk. Once the aura finally released her to the ground, the servant looked around quickly to find that it had replaced the tattered dress with a silk ballgown. The heart of the dress had become quite an airy bodice and the skirt was as magnificent as the one before, with layers upon layers of linen draping like a flock of bells, with a fountain of chiffon pouring from the back. A beautiful headpiece of golden leaves kept her charcoal locks up in an elegant style, and a wonderful mask with hems of gold shrouded half of her face in secrecy. She looked down to find the old shoes she had worn had been transformed into magnificent ones as pure as gold. It was truly a wonderful sight to see, so wonderful, the girl could practically float. After twirling for a bit, Katherine then turned her attention to a tiny little onion bouncing and rolling about to her direction, growing in the process. Branches flew around the expanding onion, vines growing and curving into wheels. Before long the plump little onion had transformed into a majestic coach of gold.

"Thank you," the servant whispered in content, turning to the tree.

"Remember," the first voice began. "The magic would only last so long. At the last stroke of midnight, the spell would be broken, and all would return to what it was before."

"Midnight?"

"Midnight." the second voice answered. "Now off you go, for you shall go to the ball!"

Katherine ran to the onion carriage as the tree released two clouds, transforming into two beautiful white horses. The noble steeds lead the way to the palace just as the moon began to rise. The servant looked back at the tree that gave her a second chance and there never was a moment in her life that Katherine felt genuinely elated until now.

  
  
** To Be Continued... **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jesus Christ this is probably OOC as hell, but hey it was certainly better than her sobbing...Kit isn't really much of a huge crier...I guess...idk, enjoy!


	7. Chapter 6: The First Night

Chapter 6:

Lo and behold, the Arusian castle glowed with delight as the festival began. Eligible party guests exited from their carriages and onto the steps of the palace. Colorfully dressed partygoers crowded the palace as the page of the kingdom announced each noble guest by title. The king and queen sat on their thrones in the balcony of the ballroom while the prince stood beside them.

It wouldn't be long until the stepfamily would become next in line. Minutes before they entered the majestic ballroom, Lisia struggled to follow her mother and sister through the crowded halls, for her mind pondered with guilt, guilt from treating her stepsister ever so cruelly.

"Mother," Lisia began. "Don't you think we were kind of harsh to Katherine?"

"Whatever gave you that idea my child?" Haggar looked away from her daughter, focusing on getting through the castle in one piece.

"But you promised she'd go to the ball and we just rejected her like that!"

"Remember Lisia, she's not of noble blood," Laurraine sneered, turning away from her sister. "Honestly, who's side are you on?"

The stepfamily entered the ballroom, ready to be graced by the royal family as the Page announced their names.

"Baroness Haggar Parisa of Galra, and her two daughters, Laurraine Ophelia Tiana Odette Rosalina of Galra and Lisia-."

"Lisia Clara Marguerite!" Lisia whispered her full name to the Page.

"...and...er...Lisia Clara Marguerite of Galra." The Page stammered as the younger sister entered the ballroom with her head held high to curtsy to the royal family.

The first two women confidently made their way down the stairs to the ballroom, while the youngest merely followed with a pleasant scowl on her face. Anyone could tell how regretful Lisia must've felt over tearing her stepsister's dress and treating her so cruelly.  
  
*'*'*'*'  
  
"Your highness, who are you looking for?" Captain Coran whispered to the prince, who became too distracted with his never ending search for the mysterious Countess Lucina.

"...no one.." Takashi lied, not making any eye contact whatsoever to ensure he didn't miss a glimpse of the countess.

"It's that Countess girl, isn't it?"

"No...yes."

The captain twiddled his mustache as the prince sighed in defeat, worrying about the woman who had enchanted him with her philosophical words.

"You're merely in a daze, there are too many noblewomen to name around here. I'm sure she'll turn up eventually."

"I hope so."  
  
*'*'*'*'  
  
  
Within two hours and thirty minutes, a lone onion carriage with white horses entered the empty royal gates, slowly coming to a full stop. Katherine emerged from the door of the carriage and slowly ascended the massive staircase, the royal guards admiring this mysterious lady. In the meantime, all of the members of the royal court had entered the ballroom, ready to begin the festivities as the page began to speak.

"Your Majesties, Your Royal Highness, My Lords, ladies and gentlemen, distinguished visitors and people of our land, the prince shall now choose his partner for the first dance. Without further ado, let the festival begin!"  
And with that, the party goers clapped as Prince Takashi entered the very center of the ballroom, seconds before a young lady, Katherine, donning a golden gown entered the ball room, catching the eyes of everyone in the gigantic ballroom, the prince especially. Thousands of eyes followed the young lady as she slowly settled down the ivory steps. Her heart raced, her breath shortened. Within minutes, she was face to face with the prince, who was ever delighted to see the young lady of interest.

"Your highness," Katherine curtsied before the prince, her knees slightly buckling.

"My lady," The prince grinned. "So you came."

As the two exchanged their dialogue, the crowd became mesmerized at the young lady that has the prince so enamored.

"Who is that charming girl?" King Harkinian asked, the Captain holding his monocle up close to catch a view of the the prince and the maiden.

"No one seems to know," the queen shook her head.

"It's the Countess of Naboo." Slav answered, smiling at the couple.

"That's her?!"

The royal couple raised their eyebrows in shock, surprised to finally see this countess in person.

"My lady, if I may," the prince began, offering his hand to the countess. "It would be my greatest pleasure, if you would dance with me."  
"Dance? Of course..." The girl hesitated but took the prince's hand, and thus the two positioned themselves to begin the dance. Not waiting another second, the king ran to the musicians, waving at them to commence the music.

"The waltz!" The king whispered his command. "Quick! The waltz!"

As the musicians began to play a lovely waltz, the prince and the countess began to twirl and step, the golden gown glistening from the light of the chandeliers and swirling around the nobility. The king and queen got up from their thrones to get a closer look at the countess while Captain Coran and Slav danced together in joy, for the prince found the girl at last. Violins, brass and wood winds created a wonderful melody to accompany the dance. The prince lifted his countess with no hesitation. Floating in the air, Katherine looked around the circle of nobility that admired the two dancers.

"They're all looking at you." The countess whispered as she descended to the ground.  
  
"Believe me, they're all looking at you." The prince smiled back.  
  
While the lovely couple danced and twirled, the king turned away from his throne.

"Where are you going dear?" The queen asked her husband.

"I'm going to the washroom," The king turned his attention to the Captain. "Captain Coran, see that they're not disturbed and when the boy proposes, notify me immediately!"

"Notify me immediately." The captain mocked in secrecy, the artist chuckling.  
  
"And remember! If anything goes wrong! It's curtains for you!"

"Harkinian!" The queen glared.  
  
As the music slowed, so has the dance. Katherine twirled one last time and curtsied as low as she can, the skirt melting gracefully into the marble floor. The audience clapped and talked amongst themselves, wondering about the countess.

"Who is that girl mother?" Lisia hopped from the crowd, trying to catch a glimpse of the couple. "I've never seen her before."

"Of course you haven't seen her before you idiot!" Laurraine hissed, clenching her fists together. "It's that wretched Countess who keeps meddling into my time with the prince!"

"Quite so. But this does not bode well." The stepmother continued to stare at the countess and the prince. "Laurraine, see that you turn the prince's head around."

"With pleasure." Laurraine was off, snatching the hand of a handsome nobleman before making their way to the circle of dancers ready for the second dance, Lisia joined in with a portly lord as her dance partner. The musicians turned the pages of their music sheets and began to play an upbeat waltz as the dancers all frolicked and leaped, dancing around the ballroom. The rest of the partygoers watching in awe of the dancers, particularly the prince and the countess. The stepmother went around the circle trying to catch a glimpse of her daughters, who were creeping in closer to the prince through pirouettes and leaps.

"Follow me," The prince muttered to the countess. And thus, the two pranced their way out of the pit of dancers and into the back door. Captain Coran and Slav then closed the curtains that lead to the back door to ensure full privacy and intimacy together without any intrusions. As the music came to a close, the two were already gone, much to the dismay of the stepsisters and the stepmother.

"You're quite the dancer, Lady Lucina." Prince Takashi huffed as he and the countess rested by a secluded room. The girl admired all the paintings of past kings who lead the kingdom with dignity, an enormous painting of the Prince appeared next to one of his father.

"Is that you?" The countess asked, coming closer to the painting, the prince nodded with a frown.

"I hate myself in paintings. Don't you?"  
"No ones ever painted my portrait." The countess humbly smiled, inspecting every little detail of drying oil on the canvas. The prince crept closer, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Well they should. Let's go out in the balcony." The prince and the countess exited the hall of painted kings and out into the balcony.

"Won't they miss you at the festival?"

"They'll be able to see me for a few more days." The prince chuckled, taking the hands of the countess, leading her to a beautiful spot on the balcony.

The moon rose prominently from the outside of the palace, the stars twinkled and sparkled with the dew drops in the royal garden. A marble lady with a pitcher of water stood gracefully on top of the fountain of water It was truly an enchanting place to be. All was silent, a glorious silence under the moonlight.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" The countess spoke softly.

"Yeah," The prince sighed. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course," the countess turned her attention to the prince.

"Do you really think it's possible to meet someone in an instant, knowing she's the one?"

Katherine froze, twiddling her fingers around the bushel of roses that covered the balcony, unsure of what to say. "I suppose it's possible. A little foolish, but possible."

"I just feel so...strange, like I'm not myself or maybe it's just with you I really am myself. Not the self that people expect me to be but rather, the real self that I...quiznak, I'm not making any sense."  
"No no, I know exactly how that feels. A whole lot actually..." Katherine looked away from the prince. She was running out of time and she had to make a move and fast! "Listen, your highness. There's something I've been meaning to tell you."

"What is it?" The prince looked at the countess, coming in closer and pulling her to his eyes. Katherine only looked down in regret and closed her eyes.

"I'm not exactly who you think I am."

"What do you mean?"

"I..." as Katherine began to speak, the clock bells chimed. The time was eleven fifty, just ten minutes before midnight! This left the countess in shock, for the magic would son expire! She then pulled away from the prince, quickly taking her leave. "I'm sorry! I have to go. It's hard to explain. Trees and onions, and things."

"Wait! Where are you going?" The prince went after her.

"You've been so nice. Thank you so much for a wonderful evening, I've loved every second of it!" Katherine hollered as she quickly ran away from Prince Takashi, who was left pondering about the 'trees and onions' the countess mentioned.

Escaping the hall of paintings, Katherine made no haste, huffing and puffing as she emerged from the curtains, the prince chased after her, only to be greeted by a crowd of ladies wanting to dance with him, Lisia pulled the prince away from the crowd to dance. Katherine was quick on her feet and continued to do so, passing by a very surprised Captain and Slav.

"My lady where are you going?" Captain Coran panicked, going after the countess.

"Leaving so soon?!" the artist cried.

"Goodbye!" Katherine did not turn her head this time, wasting no time to get to her onion coach before the clock struck midnight, not taking notice of the king approaching the countess.

"Oh! Your Majesty! I'm so sorry!" The countess huffed.

"Countess!" The startled king reassured the young lady. "Think none of it my lady."

"I just wanted to say, Your Majesty, your son Takashi is the most lovely person I ever met. So good and honest. I hope you know how much he loves you."  
Katherine quickly took her leave through the palace doors, carefully descending the steps of the palace where her onion coach waited patiently for the countess to return. Katherine quickly boarded the coach, which began to depart the kingdom.

"Wait! Where are you going?!" The king cried going after the maiden, only to find no one in sight. The prince quickly followed, mesmerized by the countess. "I was having a fine old time. You had to go and choose that one, didn't you?"

"Yes, I did." The prince answered, still enchanted by the maiden.  
  
  
*'*'*'*'  
  
  
The horses made no haste dragging the onion carriage out of the village and into the woods, nearly fading into evaporation while the time grew short. The clock chimed and chimed with just five minutes before the hand reached 12 o clock. The gargantuan onion carriage slowly began to shrink to it's smaller size, losing it's limbs and encasing Katherine inside. With the onion reducing to size, Katherine could barely see where she was going as the windows and doors slowly began to close. The clock finally struck midnight, leaving the horses to disappear into the clouds that rose from the sky, and the onion carriage broke halfway like an egg, releasing Katherine, who was once again in her mother's torn dress and her once golden slippers returned to her dirty shoes. As for her golden mask, it had vanished. The servant girl looked around, She was only half a mile away from the chateau, but far away from the kingdom.

Thunder boomed, indicating a heavy rainfall. As she continued onward to the manor, Katherine began to feel tiny raindrops falling into her skin, blessing her with a refreshing rainstorm to end the night. Amazing what the tree had done to give Katherine a truly magnificent night, well almost. Had she been given the ample opportunity to tell the truth at the exact moment, she either would've told the prince everything, or she would've hesitated out of the fear that he would be angry with her. Nonetheless, Katherine was grateful for being able to experience a royal function. The servant entered the courtyard and opened the gate to the garden, from there she was greeted by a gaggle of servants desperately looking for her.

"Kit!"

"Are you okay?!"

Hunk and Shay ran from the back door to hug the sopping girl.

"Where have you been?!" Shay cried. "We've been looking all over for you!"

"It's kind of hard to explain," Katherine looked away, leaving the two speechless.  
  
*'*'*'*'  
  
"So lemme get this straight, a magical tree fixed your dress and gave you a ride to the palace so you could dance with the prince? Tell me you're not making this up!"

"I told you, I'm not making this up. I was really there."

Hunk poured in a nice spot of tea for Katherine, who sat by the fireplace wrapped up in a blanket and her regular old rags, her mother's dress hung in the clothing line, dripping from the rain.

"So...did you finally fess up to the prince?"

"...no."

"How come?"

"I couldn't bring myself to do it. Also I didn't exactly had a whole lot of time. Just please keep this between you and me!"

Hunk nodded while Katherine sipped her tea. For a half hour the manor remained quiet, the only remaining servants awake were Hunk and Katherine. The silence broke when the sound of a carriage grew louder, indicating the arrival of the Baroness and the girls.

"Cinderella!" A voice cried, it was Lisia, entering the manor taking off her shoes and walking barefoot to the kitchen. Following her were her mother and sister, equally frustrated with the festival. "Wake up lazy bones! Tea and a plate of biscuits please!"

"Welcome back!" Hunk greeted while lighting up the remaining candlesticks the manor had, Katherine joined him, her hair remained soaked.

"My god you're sopping wet." Laurraine backed away from her stepsister.

"I took a walk in the rain to kind of clear my head and I got over it." The servant merely smiled.

"Typical." Haggar rolled her eyes as the trio sat down, Hunk and Katherine scurried to the kitchen to fetch the tea and biscuits.

"We did not communicate through words. But our souls met. My soul and the prince's soul." Lisia was enamored, given the opportunity to dance with the prince for a short amount of time.

"Oh please, your soul was over by the banquet tables." Laurraine looked away in disgust.

"You obviously didn't see him dance with me!"

"Dance with you? He didn't even speak to you!" The mother jeered, annoyed over the unsuccessful night.

"It wasn't our fault mother, it was that girl!"

"The mystery countess you dolt."

"Mystery countess?" Katherine asked, grabbing tea cups and teaspoons from the cupboard. Hunk brought a plate of delicious biscuits. The two servants made eye contact for they knew who the 'countess' really was.

"She was no countess. She was a preening interloper who made a spectacle of herself."

"Yikes, what happened there?" Katherine had set up the table and listening to what the stepfamily witnessed at the ball, Haggar then began to speak.

"That vulgar little hussy stormed right into the masque, unaccompanied mind you and much to the dismay of everyone, threw herself at the prince."

"And he actually danced with the wretched bitch" Laurraine added in frustration. "He was much too polite to send her packing in front of everyone, you see. But not wanting to expose us to the presumptuous witch any further, he took her apart. But she refused to leave and the palace guards chased her out of the festival!"

"I pity the prince. Such bad taste."

"Yes..."

After the tea had been finished, Laurraine and the baroness left the dining room to retire to their beds, only Lisia remained, finishing off the very last biscuit. Once the plate had been empty, she pushed her chair and took the tea cup and empty plates to the kitchen where Hunk and Katherine were washing the dishes.

"Umm...Cinder-I mean, Katherine." Lisia began, leaving the dishes she held on top of the empty counter. "Do you have a minute?"

"Ummm sure." Katherine looked up from her bucket of wet dishes. Hunk listened as he continued scrubbing the ones that were dirty.

"Katherine, I just want to say...I'm sorry for treating you like absolute garbage after all these years, I know you're probably never going to forgive me after calling you names and making fun of the way you do chores, and also tearing up your dress-"

"I forgive you." Katherine spoke while Lisia continued to apologize.

"All of this was just so mother could love me the same way she loves Laurraine. She practically ignores me these days and- say what?"

"I forgive you Lisia. I'll admit, I'm more mad at Laurraine and the Baroness than you. You're probably the kindest person in someone's eyes trying to be someone they're not."

"Oh..."

"You don't have to listen to your mother or your sister just to please them, you just have to think for yourself. Figure out what you want in life."

"I will try and become a better person. Not for mother, not for Laurraine, but for you and me."

"I'd like that. Now get some rest. You gotta get ready for morning mass tomorrow."

Lisia nodded and crept up the stairs, making her way to her room. She dropped her shoes down on the floor and opened her wardrobe rummaging through to find her nightgown, instead however, she found something extra special in mind for Katherine.

Meanwhile, Katherine and Hunk finished all of the dishes and returned to the servant's sleeping quarters. The candles were blown as the servant girl scurried to her attic, taking an empty journal, a quill pen and ink. Katherine couldn't wait to scribble down all that had happened, so that she might remember every single bit of it, as if though she were telling her parents about the palace festival and her time with the prince.

  
** To Be Continued... **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS JUST IN LISIA IS THE GOOD STEPSISTER! PRAISE JESUS HALLELUJAH!


	8. Chapter 7: The Palace of Childhood

** Chapter 8: **

 

The next morning became very expeditious, with the servants immediately being awakened by the baroness, who was up and running, preparing for the monastery and a small gathering with the Viscount of Taujeer as well as the second night of the festival afterwards. Shay was immediately tasked to mend, or rather add some finer additions to one of Laurraine's gowns in the hopes that it will turn the princes head around this time, especially away from the meddling countess he had been so enamored with. Matt and Katie were tasked to mind the garden, pull out any weeds and scaring off the crows who dare intrude. Thace assisted Hunk with the breakfast trays and anything else the baroness requested from the kitchen. As for Katherine, she was to sweep and scrub the floors, however her progress seemed to have slowed down since the festival, for her mind had been in a tediously long debate. Does she have feelings for Prince Takashi? Would she rather avoid him forever and let someone else who was desperate for the crown take her place? But her mind also pondered to the most important thing that crossed her mind, whether or not she'd confess to the prince about her true identity.

"Katherine?!" The Baroness wandered about aimlessly trying to find her stepdaughter. "Oh, where is that..."

"Here I am madame." Katherine arrived with a simple smile on her face. Haggar raised an eyebrow at her stepdaughter. Normally, the servant girl displayed casual and proper demeanors to the baroness, only this time around, Katherine seemed much happier. This left Haggar quite confused, considering last night's disturbing display.

"What on earth have you been doing?" Haggar sneered.

"Dreaming." The girl answered with a sigh.

"Well then wake up! My daughters- where are they?" The baroness looked around for the girls. It was time to arise for the monastery and it seems the Festival had drained an excessive amount of their energy, excluding the Baroness of course.

"I think they're still in bed."

"Well, don't just stand there, bring up the breakfast trays at once!" The stepmother's commanding tone left Katherine scurrying to the kitchen. "Once you are done, you and the others are dismissed for the day until our return."

"Something wrong?" Katherine quickly looked back.

"Oh never mind child, Lisia likes to run her mouth about servants and holidays and what not. Now on with it with those breakfast trays!" The Baroness raced to the bedrooms of her daughter's to wake them up from their slumber. Meanwhile, Katherine did what she was told and picked up the breakfast trays for delivery.

By noon, the servants in the household were free to enjoy the bright and sunny day while the stepfamily left for morning mass. The ample opportunity for Thace to find a gliding device hanging by the tree, a device possibly invented by Sir Slav Nikola. 'How on earth did a contraption like that wind up in the chateau' everyone thought to themselves seconds before Katherine deduced that it had been a gift to the Countess Lucina in the hopes that flying to the princes arms would've been a great possibility in this reality. Unfortunately that proved to be a fallacy and the contraption had been put to a much more reasonable use.

"Look! Matt, it's floating!"

"Kit, I don't know what you're so happy about?" Matt looked up from his sketchbook to see Katherine getting the invention to fly. "You're going to be neck deep in manure if they get married."

"So? I don't know why it bugs you, I could give a billion shits!" Katherine twirled around firmly grasping the the flying contraption. Matt shrugged and continued to scribble in his sketchbook.

"You're bluffing. The prince would be your brother-in-law and you Countess of Naboo would be bringing them breakfast in bed."

The servant girl did not look back, focusing on the gliding invention. "Well yeah, but soon they would move into the palace and I would stay with the manor, turn things around, like back to the good old days! That's all that matters!"

"You like him, admit it!"

"Nope!" Katherine's back had been turned from where Matt was sitting. The young lad then quickly caught sight of a galloping horse approaching, it was Prince Takashi, and following him was the captain of the guard. Quite a strange sight this was for he was supposed to be at the monastery, but his mind fell somewhere else.

"And suppose if you saw him again you'd say-"

"Why I'd march right in and say 'Your highness, my family is your family! By all means, take them away!'"

"Good, because here's your big chance he's heading this way." Matt answered, referring to the incoming prince. The servant girl turned her head and spotted the prince approaching leaving her in a state of panic, quickly leaving the flying contraption to a bush branch in the process.

"Pidge! Shay! Get the dress!" Katherine yelped as she made haste to the manor just minutes before the prince arrived on scene. Before long, Matt found himself face to face with the horse bound prince.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for Sir Nikola. We were supposed to go to the Monastery together." The prince began. "Have you seen him?"

"Sir Nikola?" Matt stammered, trying to stall him in order to buy Katherine more time to change. "Uh, no your highness."

The prince frowned and looked at the kite floating gracefully by the bush, the kite belonging to Sir Nikola. "Well is that not his flying contraption? Where did you get it?"

Matt looked away, for he had no better comeback to the prince. 'Think Matt' he thought, seconds before forming a solid answer. "From...the Countess of Naboo. She is a friend of his."

"You know her?" Takashi's face lit, maybe he had not been able to find Slav but Countess Lucina could perhaps be a substitute in the meantime. "Please, I must find her, where is she staying?"

"Uh, I believe that she is staying with a cousin, the...Baroness Haggar of Galra. But I do know that she's alone at this very moment."

"Interesting, thank you for your time. Amazing sketches by the way." And with that, the prince rode off and made a beeline to the house of the countess, leaving the servant boy to drop his mouth in awe just as Hunk arrived.

"What's going on?" Hunk asked, waving a hand in front of Matt's face.

"The prince likes my sketches!" Matt finally spoke, still amazed that such a powerful figure admired his schematics.

The prince and the captain entered the courtyard and dismounted from their steeds. He then knocked on the door with the massive doorknob. In no less than ten seconds, the door was opened by 'Countess Lucina,' donning a beautiful emerald dress.

"Your highness," Katherine huffed in relief. "Well this is an unexpected surprise!"

"My lady. Don't you attend church?" The prince began.

"My faith is better served away from crowds of people." Katherine looked away from the door as the prince crept closer.

"I guess my father's ideals have created quite the phenomenon. Which is why I'm headed for the monastery." The prince stepped back from the introverted 'countess.' "But the priests over there have an amazing library. Since you enjoy reading books, I thought you'd like to accompany me."

Katherine looked down, a faint blush colored her cheeks. "It's not fair sire, you found my weakness but I have yet to learn yours."

The prince smiled with sincerity. "But I should think it was quite obvious. Captain Coran? I won't be needing my horse or your services. Today I am just, Shiro." The captain nodded, departing the courtyard with a satisfied grin.

"Shiro?" The countess raised an eyebrow.

The Prince blushed. "It's a name my father calls me...when he's in a good mood."

The Countess giggled at her prince, who took her hand and lead her to the woods. From behind the staircase, lay Shay and Katie, exhausted from the rapid change of costume.

  
*'*'*'*'

The minute the three women entered the church, Laurraine scanned the area for the prince. She had hoped she would strike up another conversation with him and eventually spend the day together once more, maybe even dance with him this time at the festival. Throughout her life, Laurraine was showered with everything her heart desired, rendering her with the selfish delusion that she was important to the people of Arus. With a status and the privilege to walk over the less fortunate, Laurraine simply wanted more power, more authority to torment and command those she deemed unworthy. However after the stint with the countess, Laurraine would stop at nothing to ensure that her dream of becoming queen would ultimately become a reality, however it would seem that it would remain a dream with the countess interfering with her relationship with the prince. The king and queen were there for sure, but the prince seemed to have disappeared. ''No no, this won't do' she thought to herself, 'the prince needs someone to put him in his place.' Soon enough, the baroness encountered Lord Zarkon, who seemed to have a small dark pouch in hand.

"Any sign of the prince?" Haggar asked the tall man who shook his head in return.

"Prince Takashi left early this morning, Baroness." The man handed the pouch to the baroness. "No one seems to know where he went, but I brought you something that will most likely brighten your day."

The Baroness unraveled the parcel to find a treasured jewel owned by Queen Anju, indeed to find a valuable item such as this is quite the feat. "Oh you are a vicious, vicious man...I admire that."

Lord Zarkon smirked in return. "You can thank one of my men for retrieving that treasure."

  
*'*'*'*'

"Can I open my eyes now?" Katherine asked. Her eyes remained closed as Shiro guided his maiden to the open library, for it was a genuine surprise.

"Just a second...there. Now open." The prince let go of the countess, allowing her to open her eyes to a gigantic library. Levels upon levels of books surrounded the young lady, a choir of priests faintly chanting beautiful hymns, creating a heavenly place for Katherine to enjoy.

"It's so beautiful." Katherine exclaimed in awe, mesmerized at the grand universe of literature. "I've never seen this many books in my entire life! It makes me want to cry..."

"Go ahead, pick one." Shiro answered, looking at curious countess.

Katherine twirled around the library, for she was in her own utopia. "I just can't decide! It's like choosing a favorite star in the sKy."

The Prince spoke curiously. "What is it that moves you?"

"I guess it's because when I was little, my father would stay up late and read to me. He was madly addicted to written literature. At night, I would fall asleep listening to the sound of his voice." Katherine and the prince looked over from the balcony to where the priests were carrying on with their day.

"What kind of books?"

"Science, philosophy and even poetry. Every book in this library reminds me so much of him. He died when I was eight. Utopia was the last book he brought home."

"Which is why you quote it so much." The prince spoke softly. The conviction of this young countess enchanted him so and the willingness to listen drew the countess closer to the prince.

Katherine tapped her fingers onto the wooden bars, the priests chorus leaving her in awe. Amazing what the prince had shown her in the past few days. "I would rather hear his voice again than any sound in the world. I mean, coming here, being surrounded by an ocean full of books, it takes me back."

"How so?" The prince drew his attention to the countess. Katherine looked away from the prince and began to lament on the precious memories of her late father.

__  
"This is the palace of my childhood  
  
_These were the borders of my life_  
  
_In this crumbling, dusty attic_  
  
_Where an artist loved his wife_  
  
_Easy to remember, harder to move on_  
  
_Knowing the palace of my childhood is gone"_  
  


"What about your mother?" The prince spoke.

"It was the one story no one could ever bring themselves to tell me." Katherine sighed, looking down at the priests. The prince stood frozen in mesmerization. "The only thing I knew about her was that she died when I was a baby." The countess turned to find the prince staring blankly at the ceiling from below the balcony, his eyes left in wonder, leaving the girl in question. "Something wrong?"

"In all my years of study, not one tutor demonstrated the passion you have shown me in the last few days. Lucina, you have more conviction in one memory than I have in my entire life." Shiro pulled his countess close to his side, stroking her hands in the process.

Katherine looked up apologetically, ready to speak. "Your highness, if they're is anything I have said or done-"

"Please, don't. It's not you." The prince gently placed a finger onto the lips of the countess, the two crept closer and closer, feeling the want to share an exchange so beautiful, only to be interrupted by the loud rings of the bells. The two pulled away in shock and merely chuckled amongst each other.

*'*'*'*'

This mornings mass proved to be quite tedious. With the Prince missing, Laurraine grew rather impatient, for her expectations had suddenly been changed. But no matter, her mother had other plans in mind to snare the crown.

"Make haste Laurraine, it's now or never." The baroness whispered to her eldest daughter, swiftly handing her the parcel with the queen's jewel. With determination in her veins, Laurraine took the parcel and headed straight to the royal carriage where King Harkinian and Queen Anju were ready to depart the monastery.

"Forgive me, your majesty," The elder girl smiled and curtsied, handing the queen the parcel. "But you seem to have dropped this on your way out."

Anju took the parcel from the girl and unraveled the cloth, revealing her most precious jewel, a glittering golden rosary with diamonds and pearls. "My goodness! I don't even remember putting it on! Thank you child, such a rare person indeed who would return a valuable keepsake."

"Oh, you are much too magnanimous, your majesty." Laurraine bowed her head with serenity.

"How very kind." The queen smiled and turned her head to the duke sitting across from her, Laurraine in turn looked at her mother smirking in victory just seconds before turning around. "Her name?"

"Laurraine of Galra your majesty." The duke spoke. The queen returned her attention to Laurraine, who was standing and smiling ever so gracefully.

"Very well, Lady Laurraine, we shall see to it that perhaps tomorrow you and I shall have an afternoon tea together before the festival, and bring your mother!"

"As you wish." Laurraine curtsied again, returning back to her proud mother and her glaring younger sister. Within seconds, the king and queen departed from the cathedral.

*'*'*'*'

The rest of the day went pleasantly for the baroness and the girls went to an afternoon gathering, with blessed vibes for the queen invited them to afternoon tea. Another chance to meet the prince without the meddling countess this time. However the pleasant time in the gathering grew into a much, much awkward situation, for the members of the gathering spoke nothing more but the mystery countess and how witnesses saw her and the prince together at the library in the cathedral during mass. Laurraine cringed, firmly gripping her wine glass in bitter anger. The countess was one step ahead of her game and Laurraine hated every bit of it.

Meanwhile the prince and the countess were having their fun around the village. Upon the request of Katherine, Shiro took his maiden to the bakery to taste test soufflés and admire the wonderfully decorated pastries. The baker and his wife couldn't help but wonder if the woman in question was Katherine or merely a doppelgänger. The two danced around the lip of the fountain as the street performers played a joyous melody, encouraging the villagers who stood by watching the couple together. Before it was time to leave, the prince treated the countess to a lovely red rose from the florist. Afterwards the prince and the countess rode off on his horse to the drop off his maiden at the chateau. The prince dismounted from his horse and helped the maiden off the horse and into the door.

"Perhaps we shall meet at the festival again tonight?" Prince Takashi stared lovingly at the countess, taking her left hand.

"Perhaps." Katherine answered, cracking a smile. The prince gently kissed her hand before getting on his horse. The young woman stared at the prince and horse disappearing into the woods before closing the door. She then caressed the red rose from the village, still in her gentle hands.

"Katherine, may I have a word with you?" A voice spoke, frightening Katherine, urging her to hide her rose. Thank goodness it wasn't the baroness or anyone who might find out, but rather Thace. The old man grew concerned after Katherine had disappeared than usual and wished to know what had happened. He motioned Katherine to unveil her hand, displaying the red rose still in hand. As soon as Katherine changed out of her noble dress and into her old rags, the two made their way as far as possible to a secluded area located away from the chateau. Resting by a small pond, the old man and the servant girl began to converse with each other.

"Countess Lucina of Naboo?" Thace began. "You're using your mother's name to win the prince over? You're better than this Katherine."

"Thace, I know. It wasn't my intention to lie to him. I only did so to save Matt's life, you know that!" Katherine pleaded, ripping out petals from the rose and tossing it into the pond. "I have no intentions to try and 'win his heart.' Shi- I mean, Prince Takashi is not a prize to be won."

Thace looked at her with a concerned expression, almost like any parent would to their child. "But the disappearances, the disguises. Everyone in the kingdom is talking about this nonexistent noblewoman. If the Baroness catches wind of what you're doing, no amount of pleas will stop her from a cruel punishment."

"Look, I'm sorry. One little lie escalated into a big lie. I didn't think I'd see him again. Every single time I leave, he just...follows."

"All I ask is that you be careful. Laurraine and the Baroness have held quite a grudge against this mystery countess, it would only be a matter of time until they find out who you really are. I promised your father I'd make sure I keep you safe even from the prince."

Katherine nodded, ripping out the last and smallest rose petal, watching it fall delicately into the pond. The two remained quiet, admiring the little petals floating in the water.  
  
*'*'*'*'

As the sun began to set, the carriage arrived back in the harrowing chateau. The Baroness and the girls emerged from their coach with mixed expressions regarding the princes disappearance. Thankfully the queen's invitation had turned their frowns into smiles, thoughit only seems that they can be hopeful that the prince will actually show up by then.

  
"Now, we can't be to confident, ladies." Haggar spoke as she walked to the front door. "The prince wasn't in church today and we must know why."

"How come Laurraine gets to do everything?" Lisia complained.

"Oh Lisia, don't be daft," Laurraine sneered, following her sister. "The queen barely even knows you exist."

The Baroness crept closer to her favorite daughter, who continued to smirk. "What Laurraine does is for all of us my dear and we are counting on you to help her get ready."

Lisia grew rather frustrated with her family. "Oh wonderful, next thing you know I'll be cleaning the fireplace with Katherine!"

"Where is that girl anyway?"

"Probably off catching rabbits with her teeth."

"I heard that." Katherine surprised her stepfamily with a smile. "Now perhaps I should assist you with your preparations for the festival?"

"My, my are we eager this afternoon." The stepmother raised an eyebrow as she entered the manor.

Katherine merely grinned in response. "I just do whatever I can madame."

"I beg your pardon my lady," Shay asked. "But that mirror in your bedroom, did you move it?"

"Of course not, why do you ask?" The baroness turned her head to the bumbling seamstress.

"It's also missing."

"Then it too shall come out of your pay." The stepfamily looked away and entered the manor to prepare for the Festival, leaving the staff to glare at the one who couldn't keep her mouth shut.

"Either you stop telling her when things goes missing or else we'll be paying her to work!" Katie grumbled.

"Good thing I didn't mention the tapestries." Shay sighed.

 

** To Be Continued **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is super late and super halfassed. In truth I've been preparing cosplays, trying to get some personal stuff and writing the rest of the chapters. Multitasking is risky!


End file.
